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Medallion Resources Receives US Department of Defense Related Inquiries
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Feb. 10, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Medallion Resources Ltd. (TSX-V: MDL; OTCPK: MLLOF; Frankfurt: MRDN) – “Medallion” or the “Compan
About this update from Gamma Resources Ltd.
[{"type":"text","content":" VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Feb. 10, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Medallion Resources Ltd. (TSX-V: MDL; OTCPK: MLLOF; Frankfurt: MRDN) – “Medallion” or the “Company”), pursuing North American production of rare-earth magnet metals, announced that is has received inquiries from several rare-earth element (REE) refineries interested in receiving specifications and potential volumes of the Company’s REE concentrate product. These refineries are considering their response to the US Department of Defense’s recent Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA), directed toward light REE processing and separation. Medallion’s proposed US-based REE process plant is well-suited to provide a high-quality feedstock for separation by either existing or future refining facilities. The Medallion plant will utilize monazite sand, a rare-earth element rich (>50%) by-product mineral which is abundantly available within the United States. The Company’s proprietary process extracts a REE chemical concentrate from high grade monazite sand in a clean, safe and automated operation without the need for mining or upgrading. The Department of Defense’s FOA is seeking proposals to establish or enhance domestic light REE processing and separation capacity under the Defense Production Act (DPA). The estimated government funding contribution for this project is up to US$40 million for accepted proposals and requires matching funding. Medallion’s product, a light rare-earth concentrate enriched in the magnetic metals neodymium (Nd) and praseodymium (Pr), is in short supply outside China. In fact, Beijing prohibits its export to ensure value-add stages are completed within China. By utilizing a domestically available by-product mineral, Medallion’s approach can help provide a key component of the rare-earth value chain outside of China. Defense Production Act of 1950 - Background Over the last few years, under direction from Beijing, six state-owned enterprises (SOE) have consolidated the bulk of the Chinese domestic rare-earth mining and processing capacity and now dominate that marketplace. In fact, China currently controls about 85% of global rare-earth production. The Trump administration has expressed strong support for the US military to become less reliant on foreign-sourced materials and processing technology. A key area of concern has been the high concentr...