Lynas Rare Earths opens Kalgoorlie processing plant, boosting local supply chain resilience

Australia’s hopes of becoming a significant player in the global rare earths chain have reached a key milestone with the official opening of Lynas Rare Earths’ (ASX: LYC) processing plant in Kalgoorlie, Western Australia.

Home to world-class rare earth reserves, Australia is seen as a key link in a global supply chain aiming to shift away from China’s dominance.

Now, with the nation’s first rare earth processing plant officially unveiled, the country has taken a significant stride in positioning itself as a major supplier to a growing global market.

Government support

The project’s importance has been acknowledged by the federal and WA governments, with Minister for Resources and Northern Australia Madeleine King stating at its official opening that the plant it is a big deal for Kalgoorlie, a huge deal for WA and a massive step for Australia.

Ms King told attendees that the new plant would create around 115 direct jobs in the Goldfields region by processing ores from the nearby Mt Weld mine to create a mixed rare earth carbonate.

“This facility is globally significant—it will be the first rare earth processing facility in Australia and the largest outside of China.”

Economic benefits

Minister King said processing more of Australia’s critical minerals and rare earths locally is a significant part of the government’s plans for “building Australia’s future.”

“Projects like the Lynas Rare Earths processing facility will deliver direct economic benefits to Australia while strengthening our sovereign capability,” Ms King said.

“Critical minerals and rare earth elements are essential for clean energy technologies such as electric vehicles, solar panels and wind turbines, as well as advanced electronics, the defence industry and medical devices.”

Growth plan

Lynas chief executive officer Amanda Lacaze said the facility is a key part of the company’s 2025 growth plan.

The $800 million large-scale facility was delivered in less than 2 ½ years from the receipt of full construction approvals.

“This was an ambitious project which established downstream rare earth processing in Australia for the first time,” Ms Lacaze said.

“I’m proud of the way our team embraced the challenge—we have created a state-of-the-art rare earth processing facility and a new, future-facing industry for the City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder.”

The Kalgoorlie plant is fully commissioned and producing, with the mixed rare earth carbonate produced in Kalgoorlie to be shipped to Lynas’ Malaysian facility for separation into individual products and, ultimately, supply the company’s planned US facility.

Significant step

The Chamber of Minerals and Energy of Western Australia’s chief executive officer Rebecca Tomkinson said the plant represents a significant step along the processing and value-adding chain for WA’s resources sector.

“The minerals mined and processed by Lynas Rare Earths are essential for a wide range of modern technology, including mobile phones, medical devices, wind turbines, and electric vehicles,” Ms Tomkinson said.

She said the plant will play a vital role in building supply chain resilience for both low-emission energy and defence applications.

“The cracking and leaching operation will also support hundreds of local jobs in the Goldfields-Esperance region and inject hundreds of millions of dollars into the local economy.”

“WA possesses some of the richest rare earth deposits on the planet [and] bringing those minerals to market will require a continued focus on streamlining and accelerating project assessments, boosting the supply of turnkey industrial land and ensuring access to reliable, cost-competitive and low-emission energy.”