Lynas Rare Earths has secured the final approval from West Australian Environment Minister Reece Whitby for the development of the $500 million Kalgoorlie rare earths refinery in Western Australia.
A Ministerial Statement under the Environment Protection Act 1986 (WA) was issued, and it outlines several conditions for the construction and operation of the new facility that are consistent with initiatives proposed by Lynas.
“Lynas is very pleased to be progressing this important project to establish a Critical Minerals value added processing facility in Kalgoorlie which meets the strict environmental conditions of Western Australian regulators.
“This is consistent with our environmental, social and governance (ESG) approach, our commitment to operating in a way that is safe for our people, our communities and the environment and our objective to contribute positively to the communities in which we operate,” Lynas Rare Earths said in a statement.
The rare earths processing facility is going to be utilised to process rare earth concentrates from the company’s Mt Weld mining operations.
Lynas Rare Earths has been working with all levels of government to ensure that the Kalgoorlie facility can sustainably support the Australian Government’s Critical Minerals and Modern Manufacturing strategies as well as the Future Battery and Critical Minerals Industries Strategies of the State Government, and the City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder's economic diversification plans.
The company is currently working to finalise secondary approvals that are necessary for project implementation.
The project is anticipated to create up to 290 jobs during its construction and about 128 new ongoing jobs.
The new facility is going to be built on Lot 500 Great Eastern Highway, which has been identified by the Western Australian Government and the City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder as a possible location for critical minerals processing.
Source: Lynas Rare Earths (1, 2); Australian Mining; ABC News; The West Australian; Kalgoorlie Miner; Creamer Media’s Mining Weekly