Red Metal reports successful rare earth extraction tests at Sybella

Red Metal Limited has reported successful column leach test results for the Sybella rare earths project near Mount Isa, Queensland. The testing focused on the Kary Zone’s fresh granite ore, which constitutes approximately 598 million tonnes of the project’s 936-million-tonne inferred resource.

The tests achieved neodymium and praseodymium extraction rates of 65% and 68%, respectively. A significant finding was the lower acid consumption required for the fresh granite, which used 19kg of sulphuric acid per tonne. This is a reduction compared to the 23–27kg per tonne required for the saprock and transitional ore types located above the granite.

These metals are critical for manufacturing permanent magnets used in electric vehicles, wind turbines, and industrial equipment. The successful testing of all three main ore types in the Kary Zone provides key metallurgical data for the company’s ongoing pre-feasibility study (PFS).