Saskatchewan Spearheads Rare Earth Metals Production

Saskatchewan Rare Earth Metals

In the summer of 2024, the Saskatchewan Research Council (SRC) marked a major achievement by producing its first batch of rare earth metals at a commercial scale. This sets the stage for its facility to be fully operational by early 2025. Currently, the plant is capable of producing 10 tons of neodymium-praseodymium (NdPr) per month, with a purity exceeding 99.5%. Thanks to agreements signed in July 2024 with international partners, SRC was able to initiate large-scale production with minimal upfront investment.

SRC plans to boost its output to 40 tons per month by the end of 2024, with the aim of producing 400 tons annually once the plant is fully operational. Since 2020, the project has received a combined $101 million in funding from the Saskatchewan government and the federal Canadian government. SRC has also secured partnerships with companies such as Australia’s Arafura Rare Earths and Vietnam’s Hung Thinh Group to ensure a stable feedstock supply, further solidifying Saskatchewan’s position as a key player in the global rare earth industry.