Critical Metals ups stake in world’s largest rare earths project to 42% 

Europe-focused Critical Metals Corp (Nasdaq: CRML) said on Tuesday it has completed Stage 1 of its recently announced plan to acquire a controlling interest in the Tanbreez rare earth project in Greenland.

Tanbreez has been ranked the largest rare earth deposit in the world, hosting 28.2 million tonnes of total rare earth oxides in 4.7 billion tonnes of material, according to internal company estimates. The asset is expected to contain more than 27% heavy rare earth elements, and Critical Metals says efforts to convert this resource to US standards are already being made.

In exchange for a 36.45% interest in Tanbreez Mining Greenland, Critical Metals issued 8.4 million shares to Rimbal Pty Ltd, the project’s owner. The shares traded at $9.97 apiece at market close Tuesday, giving the company a market capitalization of $820 million.

This transaction completes the first of a two-staged share issuance plan, and it builds on Critical Metals’ previously announced acquisition of an initial 5.55% stake in exchange for an investment of $5 million in Rimbal, bringing the company’s total interest in Tanbreez to 42%.

“Tanbreez is a game-changing rare earth asset for the West, an assessment supported by both our due diligence, including our visit to the project last week, as well as third-party evaluations,” Critical Metals CEO Tony Sage said in a news release.

“By acquiring Tanbreez, we are taking a key step towards positioning Critical Metals as a reliable and long-term strategic supplier of both light and heavy rare earth elements to meet the escalating demand for these materials for technology and defense applications in the western world,” Sage added.  

The company also owns the Wolfsburg project in Austria, which is set to become the EU’s only battery-grade lithium mine by 2027.