ASX-listed American Rare Earths (ARR) has acquired the rights to explore, develop and process scandium, nickel and cobalt at the Split Rocks project, in Western Australia.
The acquisition of the Scandium Mineral rights over the project, from fellow-listed Zenith Minerals, is consistent with the company’s global objectives to create a rare earths and scandium supply chain.
Zenith has agreed to grant ARR an exclusive option to acquire Scandium Minerals to a maximum depth of 50 m from surface within a portion of Zenith’s Split Rocks project.
The option is subject to ARR paying a A$50 000 option fee and A$400 000 worth of ARR shares within six months. A further payment of A$100 000 will be due to Zenith should ARR publish a mineral resource estimate, containing no less than 10-million tonnes of scandium grading 50 parts per million (ppm).
ARR will issue 5-million shares to Zenith, should the development realise in a mining lease and pay Zenith a net smelter return royalty of 3%.
The option is also subject to ARR committing to fund exploration worth no less than A$10 000.
Zenith in 2018 identified the presence of elevated scandium at shallow levels based on drilling an area of 3 km by 1 km. Zenith found scandium grades greater than 50 ppm in 62 samples, from 46 drill holes, at a maximum depth of 52 m.
While ARR remains focused on unlocking the rare earths and scandium mineral potential at its La Paz and Wyoming projects in the US, the acquisition of Scandium Mineral rights over the Split Rock project presents a unique opportunity for the company to expand its scandium portfolio and provides further basis for developing its strategic materials strategy in the future.