By: Ecofin agency

In South Africa, UK-based mining company Rainbow Rare Earths now plans to complete the definitive feasibility study (DFS) for its Phalaborwa rare earths project in 2026. The announcement, made on October 27 in its financial report, marks another delay in the technical study initially expected in the first half of 2025.

The company had already postponed the timeline to the end of 2025 in March. Although reasons for the latest update were not detailed, the delay may be linked to challenges in implementing the extraction process selected for the project. Rainbow Rare Earths plans to recover rare earths not from raw ore but from industrial residues known as phosphogypsum, aiming to create a cost-effective and environmentally sustainable production method.

Completion of the DFS is expected to pave the way for project financing ahead of construction, scheduled to begin in 2027. A preliminary study released in late 2024 estimated total investment needs at $326 million. The two-year payback project is designed to produce about 1,900 tons of magnet rare earth oxides annually over a 16-year mine life.

Phalaborwa could become one of the few rare earth production sources outside China, the global leader in both production and refining of these strategic metals. The project has already secured support from the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), which committed $50 million through investment firm TechMet.