Lynas Rare Earths, the biggest producer of the key materials outside of China, said it will need to look at ways to address lost capacity should its Malaysian plant be shut indefinitely.
The miner was dealt a blow in February when Malaysia denied its request to keep its Kuantan plant running beyond mid-2026 on environmental grounds, saying it generates radioactive waste.
“If we don’t get a change in the conditions that are attached to the current license in Malaysia, then we will have to shut that plant for a period of time,” CEO Amanda Lacaze said in a Bloomberg Television interview Wednesday. “It will not be desirable if we have to shut down one part of our operations in Malaysia, but we certainly have plans to ensure that we can continue to meet this growth in demand.”
The Australian-listed company that mines and processes rare earths is boosting investment in its facilities overseas and in Australia, with its Kalgoorlie plant expected to ramp up production in “due course,” Lacaze said. She didn’t specify whether Lynas would need to look at securing additional capacity through expanding other projects or through acquisitions if Kuantan closes.
Rare earths are used in electronics and renewable energy, and are vital in the aerospace and defense industries. China dominates mining and production of the minerals, although the US and Australia, where there are significant deposits, are attempting to chip away at its stranglehold on the market.
“China is not going to cede its dominant position in rare earths easily,” Lacaze said. “On the other hand, the market is buoyant, the market is growing, there is room for many winners.”
Japan’s Sojitz Corp. and a Japanese government organization agreed in March to invest an additional A$200-million ($133-million) in Lynas to expand its output of light rare earths and start the separation of heavy rare earth elements in efforts to meet demand for the materials.
Lynas has “a really substantive investment program, which will see us grow our capacity and output over the next several years so that we can meet that market demand,” Lacaze said.