Brazil-focused REE company Serra Verde Group has secured $150m (1.11bn reais) in investment from Denham Capital and the Energy and Minerals Group from the US and Vision Blue Resources.
Serra Verde has also earned a place on the Minerals Security Partnership’s (MSP) global list of projects considered to play key role in the global energy transition.
The investment will fund operational enhancements and long-term growth initiatives.
Serra Verde, the only scale producer of four essential REEs outside of Asia, is set to bolster global supply chains with a new, reliable and sustainable source.
These REEs are vital for manufacturing efficient permanent magnets used in electric vehicles (EVs), wind turbines and other key technologies driving the energy transition.
The MSP, a consortium of 14 countries and the EU, chaired by the Republic of Korea, is focused on fostering diverse and sustainable critical mineral supply chains.
It provides financial and diplomatic support to strategic projects, advocating for elevated environmental, social and governance (ESG) standards, increased recycling of critical materials and local value addition.
Serra Verde’s commitment to sustainability is evident in its ionic clay operation in Brazil, which employs low-risk mining techniques and simple processing with eco-friendly reagents.
Serra Verde commenced commercial production early this year. It is already enhancing its phase one capacity and exploring a potential phase two expansion that is expected to double production by 2030.
Serra Verde CEO Thras Moraitis said: “Today’s announcement is a strong endorsement of the significant role that Serra Verde can play in establishing sustainable, secure and diversified rare earth supply chains to enable the global energy transition.
“Federal, state and international coordination on the criticality of current and future critical mineral operations is essential to ensure they reach the scale necessary to allow them to successfully compete and accelerate the development of our industry.
“We have ambitious plans to invest in and expand our operation and the additional investment from our shareholders will enable us to continue to deliver on these exciting initiatives.”
In January this year, Serra Verde began commercial production of MREC from phase one of its Pela Ema deposit in Minaçu, Goiás, Brazil.
