Critical Metals finds new high-grade areas at Tanbreez rare earths project

European rare earths developer Critical Metals (NASDAQ: CRML) has flagged additional upside for its flagship Tanbreez project in Greenland after its exploration team identified two high-grade areas that were previously not factored into its development strategy. Shares rose 3.3%. 

In Tuesday’s update, the company said that its team examined three areas containing high-grade rare earth material during the past field season. Two of the areas were not initially envisioned for mining, namely Horizon Zero, where limited testing returned about 5% zirconium dioxide (ZrO₂), and EALS, located above the unit designated for mining. The third area had high-grade, coarse-grained pegmatites next to the access road of the Tanbreez project’s proposed tailings site.

“The team continues to make remarkable strides at our rare earth project in southern Greenland,” Tony Sage, Critical Metals CEO and executive chairman said in a release. “Through our collaboration with the Greenland government, we have secured a cost-effective power supply, enabling us to optimize our development strategy and create a more favorable project roadmap.”

Critical Metals shares traded for US$6.44 apiece on Tuesday at mid-day in Toronto, for a market capitalization of US$525.7 million. Its shares traded in a 52-week range of US$6.02 to US$17.77. The company is a unit of European Lithium (ASX: EUR).

Critical Metals acquired a controlling stake in Tanbreez in June, hailing it as a potential “game-changing” mine project for North America’s rare earths supply chain. By total resource count, it is ranked the largest rare earth deposit in the world at 28.2 million tonnes of total rare earth oxides (TREO) contained within 4.7 billion tonnes of material. Just two weeks ago, the Greenland government extended Critical Metals’ exploitation licence for Tanbreez. It must submit exploitation and closure plans by the end of next year, provide financial security and a company guarantee by June 30, 2026, and begin mining by the end of 2028.

Drilling started last month, and consisted of 14 holes with a total cumulative length of up to 2,200 metres. The drill program is aimed at upgrading the Tanbreez resource to U.S. SEC standards and enhancing the potential mine throughput. Critical Metals’ team is currently actively cutting and preparing the drill core for testing.

With the new information, the company said it will now mine the run-of-the-mill ore at 1.7-1.9% ZrO₂, producing a concentrate at 10% ZrO₂, 2.5% REO (30% heavy REO), 1.0% niobium, and 0.15% tantalum and hafnium between late spring to mid-autumn, or about eight months of the year. During the winter months, it will enhance the cost-effectiveness of its development strategy by reducing labour and electricity usage while maintaining the same level of rare earth concentrate production.

For this strategy, the company said it has begun discussions with Nukissiorfiit, the Greenland government’s electric company, to secure a reliable and sustainable power source to support the production of up to 3 tonnes of rare earth materials annually.