NYSE-listed IMC Rare Earths has managed to achieve terbium recoveries of up to 95.2% from laboratory-scale metallurgical testwork at its Itarantim ionic adsorption clay project in Brazil.

The company has also successfully produced a mixed rare earth carbonate (MREC) on site.

IMC has tasked ANSTO Minerals to undertake further quantitative metallurgical work on material from Itarantim, particularly to further quantify recovery performance and the characteristics of the MREC.

IMC explains the combination of high terbium grade and strong leachability is particularly significant, indicating rich rare earths and prime conditions for extraction. The company believes these results place Itarantim among the highest-grade terbium-bearing ionic adsorption clay projects currently being evaluated globally.

Rare earths are critical to today’s and tomorrow’s technologies, including AI, robotics, advanced electronics and defence applications. Amid surging demand, companies and governments will benefit from a more diverse, reliable and secure supply of these essential components.

Dysprosium and terbium are among the scarcest and most highly sought-after elements, used in high-performance permanent magnets to help maintain strength at high temperatures. They are critical for applications including electric vehicles, wind turbines, robotics, advanced electronics and defence technologies.

IMC is seeking to help meet that need through Itarantim, an ionic adsorption clay project in Brazil that hosts about 1.1-billion tonnes of inferred mineral resource containing all four principal magnet rare earth elements: neodymium, praseodymium, dysprosium and terbium.

The terbium findings are particularly high, measured at an average of eight parts per million terbium from material within a 105.8-million-tonne inferred domain.

“We are very encouraged by these results, which mark an important step forward in our project. There has been an awakening around the world that we need greater supplies of rare earths from diverse areas. Our mission is to be a world-class supplier and our immediate focus is on further confirming the richness of our deposits," says IMC CEO and chairperson Frank Scolaro.