Lynas Rare Earths, the largest producer of separated rare earths outside China, announced October 1 a binding scheme of arrangement to absorb Meteoric Resources in an all-scrip deal valued at roughly A$968 million (about US$672 million). Meteoric shareholders will receive 0.0207 Lynas shares for each share held — equivalent to A$0.286 per share, a 68.4 percent premium to Meteoric’s prior close of A$0.170. On completion, Meteoric holders would own about 5.9 percent of the enlarged group.
The prize is the Caldeira project in Brazil’s Minas Gerais state, described by the parties as the largest known ionic-clay rare earth deposit outside China. The resource carries 802,000 tonnes of neodymium-praseodymium oxide and 41,000 tonnes of dysprosium-terbium oxides, with ore reserves of 151 million tonnes supporting a 23-year mine life. Planned average output is about 12,500 tonnes of rare earth oxides a year, including 3,862 tonnes of NdPr and 127 tonnes of DyTb. A July feasibility study put development spending at US$498 million.
To keep Caldeira moving through the approval process, Lynas extended an interim funding facility of up to A$110 million, with an initial A$35 million tranche available immediately for environmental licensing and development. The scheme needs 75 percent shareholder approval, court approval and Brazilian change-of-control clearance; the booklet goes out in December, the vote is expected in January 2027 and implementation is targeted for March 2027.
Markets were split on the price of strategic insurance: Meteoric shares jumped about 55 percent while Lynas fell more than 5 percent, as investors weighed the technical risk of processing ionic clay — a feedstock type Lynas has never handled — against the value of heavy rare earth supply the West cannot currently replicate.