Australia’s Arafura rare earth shares surge in government funding for project By Investing.com
Investing.com– Australian rare earth miner Arafura Resources Ltd (ASX: ) bounced back on Wednesday after the company won A$200 million ($123.72 million) in government investment for a mining and processing project in the Northern Territory.
Arafura jumped over 17% to A$0.135, after rising more than 20% earlier in the session.
The company said it had signed a binding agreement with the National Reconstruction Fund Corporation for a grant of A$200 million to support the development of its Nolans project, located near Alice Springs in the Northern Territory.
Arafura said the A$200 million – to be invested through unsecured convertible bonds – was expected to be a catalyst for more equity financing in Nolan and could also attract additional investors to the project, which is expected to be Australia’s first ore-to- rare oxide processing operation.
Rare metal producers outside of China have gathered increased interest in recent months as Western countries try to secure supply chains for the material in the face of potential export restrictions in China.
Rare earths are used in a variety of large-scale applications, from electronics manufacturing to defense applications. China is currently the world’s largest producer of the material, but is expected to tighten supplies in retaliation for trade restrictions and tariffs imposed by the US
