Ramaco Resources Inc. in northeast Wyoming plans to update its rare earths deposit find in the Cowboy State on Wednesday, pushing the estimate on tonnage underground to more than 1.5 million tons, and the value to more than $37 billion because of the inclusion of Chinese minerals banned for shipment to America.
The deposit in the coal-rich Powder River Basin is already considered to be one of the world’s largest deposits of rare earth minerals.
Ramaco estimated in May 2023 that it had 800,000 tons of rare earths. Since then as testing has continued, that figure has been revised upward to 1.2 million tons.
But a new technical report prepared by a consultant for Lexington, Kentucky-based Ramaco reveals 1.5 million tons with more than 10% of the Brook Mine deposit estimated to contain strategic gallium and germanium critical minerals.
In terms of the report’s key findings — to be released Wednesday — both the reported Brook Mine’s rare earth tonnage volume and concentrations estimates have almost doubled since the original May 2023 report.
A key aspect contained in the updated report is the notation that China has banned for export those two high-value critical minerals to the United States, which were not included in the earlier analysis in 2023.
The increased prices in the two critical minerals prompted Ramaco to include them in the new analysis — which is likely to bring the value of the rare earths deposit to well over $37 billion.
Bought Mine For $2
Ramaco Chairman and CEO Randal Atkins declined to discuss the findings of the report in advance of a Wednesday conference call with investors.
“We don’t want to front-run the report,” Atkins told Cowboy State Daily.
Ramaco had previously tested a third of its long-dormant 15,800-acre coal mine located 7 miles north of Sheridan, which it bought sight unseen for $2 million in 2011.
The technical report, which was filed with the U.S. Securities and Regulatory Commission on March 21, notes that an additional 59 holes were drilled since the last report on the rare earth minerals find in May — boosting the total holes to 123.
Rare earth minerals are used in magnet materials required for everything from powering electric vehicles and wind turbines to military applications to ensure short takeoffs and landings of jets from an aircraft carrier’s deck, and aircraft powered by magnet motors.
Ramaco, which is pursuing potential pilot production and commercialization at its Brook Mine deposit, is considering collaboration with a university, and governmental and other research institutions to explore “unconventional processing techniques,” according to a copy of the Weir report.
The Brook Mine is not the only game in the rare earth minerals world in Wyoming.
There’s also Rare Element Resources Ltd. looking to complete a rare earth minerals demonstration factory in Upton, and American Rare Earths Inc. that aims to raise $456 million to begin mine development and production in Wheatland.
“There are still many issues to be addressed for one to conclude that prospects are reasonable for economically feasible extraction of the minerals at this time,” according to the Weir report. “Work is currently ongoing to address these issues.”
Pat Maio can be reached at pat@cowboystatedaily.com.
