Rare Earth Industry Assessment and Price Forecast

Transcription

1 Rare Earth Industry Assessment and Price Forecast The following report and price forecast was prepared for Tantalus Rare Earths AG by Asian Metal on April 17, 2012, and updated on December 30 th, In 2010, the Chinese government cut rare earth export quotas by roughly 40%, down to 30,258 tons from 51,145 tons. While both the initial cut in export quotas as well as fears of additional cuts have resulted in massive price volatility during the past 2 years, the constriction on supply simultaneously prompted tremendous growth in both the upstream mining and downstream processing sectors of the industry. In essence, global markets have recognized the need to diversify the sources of supply for these critical materials and many junior mining ventures have rushed to fill this position. At present, there are over 400 rare earth projects outside of China, typically referred to as Rest of World (ROW) mines, hoping to come online in the next 4-6 years. Even under the most ambitious rare earth demand growth estimates, it is evident global consumption will never justify the development of the overwhelming majority of these deposits. In all reality, only 7-8 projects are likely to make it to production and become successful rare earth mining ventures. In order to effectively identify the projects most likely to succeed, it is important to recognize several critical aspects of the rare earth industry: - The projected global supply scenario for rare earths differs by the individual rare earth elements; many rare earth elements, notably cerium and lanthanum, will be in surplus by 2013, while other REEs, the heavy rare earths, will remain in shortage. - There is no uniform downstream demand for rare earths; demand for the majority of rare earth elements and their corresponding products is driven by fundamentally different industries that will likely see varying degrees of growth, or diminution, in the upcoming years. - The processing of rare earths into downstream products is both costly and complex; successful mining ventures will require access to the technology and expertise necessary to produce finished products The global rare earth industry is swiftly changing, and in order to fully grasp the magnitude of this change and identify who the major players will be, it is crucial to discuss the past, current, and anticipated future trends for both supply and demand, as well as some of the critical challenges potential rare earth mining projects must face. Rare Earth Supply Analysis and Projections China controls roughly 97% of current rare earth production, and despite the inevitable emergence of alternative supply sources in the upcoming years, is forecasted to remain the dominant global force in the mining, separation, processing, as well as the many mid-to-downstream industries within the rare earth sector. In 2011, total Chinese rare earth production, based on the 93,800t of

2 production quota allocations as well as estimated illicit production output, hovered around 120,000t. Although production quotas are expected to see steady 3-4% growth per year through 2014, industry consolidation and the continued crack down on illegal mining should keep total Chinese production at around 120, ,000t/y. Critical to understanding the fundamentals behind the supply of rare earths are the reasons behind China s superior economic advantages in the production of these critical materials. Future projections for supply must take into account both industry trends within the Chinese domestic and export markets, as well as the ROW mines scheduled to come into production during the next two years. Analysis leads to two apparent conclusions: lanthanum and cerium markets will enter surplus in the next two years, and heavy rare earth compounds will face supply constrictions. While many provinces throughout China are actively engaged in the mining of rare earths, generally speaking, most light rare earths (La, Ce, Nd, and Pr) tend to be mined in the northern regions while the mid-heavy rare earths (Dy, Er, Eu, Gd, Ho, Lu, Sc, Sm, Tb, Tm, Yb, and Y) tend to come from China s southern regions. To date, China has held several unique advantages in the rare earth mining sector that have enabled it to substantially reduce production costs. Located in Inner Mongolia, Baotou Steel s Bayan Obo mine, the world s largest individual source for light rare earths, is primarily an iron ore mine and produces rare earth as a by-product from the tailings. By-product economics enable Baotou Steel to mine rare earths at a fraction of the cost of its potential global competitors. Current rare earth production output for the Bayan Obo mine, roughly 25,000 tons per annum, is estimated to be operating at only a fraction of total production capacity. The infamous ionic clay deposits of southern China, essentially the world s primary source for heavy rare earths, provide China with a massive advantage in terms of heavy rare earth production. Ionic clays not only enjoy unparalleled Heavy Rare Earth Oxide (HREO) grades, but also benefit from simple and inexpensive processing techniques. A very basic leaching method can be used to separate the ionic clay into rare earth concentrate and relatively small operations can still run efficiently. In the past few years industry consolidation has been a major theme within the Chinese rare earth sector. Although China regulates rare earth production through the issuance of annual production quotas, and likewise regulates exports through annual export quotas, illegal mining remains prominent and is still a major source of production for rare earth materials. As part of China s strategy to curb illegal mining and reduce environmental degradation, the Ministry of Commerce has decreased the number of mining companies and has cracked down on illegal operations. Nevertheless, illegal production remains rampant throughout China and is expected to still account for as much as 20-25% (24,000-30,000t) of total current supply. Illegal mining is a particularly significant problem in many of the ionic clay rich southern Chinese provinces, and at present, roughly 30-40% of heavy rare earth production is believed to be unsanctioned.

3 China s policy concerning its rare earth export quota system has essentially dictated ROW supply for the past two decades, and in the case of many rare earth compounds, will continue to be the Chinese rare earth export quotas by year (thousands of tons) dominant determinant for future supply in the upcoming 4-5 years. While quotas prior to 2010 typically hovered in the 50,000t range, the 40% reduction in 2010 export quotas prompted a sharp climb in prices from H to H In some instances, price levels increased by a factor of 10 as downstream users, fearing the constriction in supply would block access to critical rare earth material, scrambled to increase stockpiles and secure supply sources. Since the initial major cut in 2010, China has held rare earth export quotas in the 30,000-32,000t/y range. The first round of 2012 quota allocations, announced on December 28 th 2011, was for roughly 24,904t and allegedly represents 80% of the total 2012 rare earth export quota, putting the final number at 31,130t. The Ministry of Commerce initially announced it would award 10,546t of quotas to nine companies for immediate export and an additional 14,358t on reserve for companies that had not yet met environmental inspections. While Baotou Steel, initially awarded a provisional allocation of 3,450t, was recently granted a full export quota license, 16 other companies still await approval. New production from US-based Molycorp, Inc (MCP NYSE) and Australia-based Lynas Corporation Limited (LYS ASX), both of which are already in advanced stages of development, could add an additional 40,000-42,000t of high purity material to the market by the end of 2013 given no further disruption in company plans. The TREO grades for each of these projects are almost entirely composed of light rare earths and it is widely expected that the market for light rare earths could become highly saturated when full production becomes available. On the other hand, the supply of heavy rare earths will remain almost entirely dependent upon Chinese production for the next 3-4 years. The separation and processing of heavy rare earth-rich concentrate into high purity oxides and metals outside of China will require substantial new capital investment and an extensive understanding of metallurgy. At present, the overwhelming majority of heavy rare earth processing facilities are in China, and previous scoping studies done by prospective rare earth mining ventures indicate that a new separation plant would cost roughly USD

4 million and take 3-4 years to complete. As a result, availability of heavy rare earths will be dependent upon Chinese production levels until 2014 at the earliest - the soonest a non-chinese processing facility could be completed. While Great Western Mineral Group Ltd. (GWG TSXV) Steenkampskraal project in South Africa, due to start production in 2014, boasts nearly 10% heavy rare earth distribution in its TREO grade, it will not be close to enough material to substantially impact global demand. New to the 2012 Chinese export quota, lanthanum, cerium, praseodymium and neodymium were separated from the mid-heavy rare earths, which would just receive 15% of the total quota. It is worthwhile exploring the consequences and potential intentions behind China s introduction of separate rare earth export quotas. In the next two years global light rare earth production outside of China will see massive increases as Molycorp and Lynas ramp up production, with their combined production output for cerium oxide and lanthanum oxide hitting nearly 32,500t in Further consolidation within the Chinese domestic rare earth industry and the continued battle on illegal production will enable China to further tighten its stranglehold on the production of heavy rare earths. The delineation between light rare earth and heavy rare earth export quotas minimally suggests plans to adapt different strategies when monitoring the export volumes of these materials, presumably, retaining tighter control over the export volumes of heavy rare earths. China fully understands that the global supply of heavy rare earths is substantially more critical than that of light rare earths and is moving to protect its domestic supply and keep export prices elevated. By distinguishing between the two classes of rare earths, China can avoid an otherwise inevitable shift towards a higher proportion of heavy to light rare earth exports, and choose to hold stable, or further restrict, future heavy rare earth export quotas. At the same time, high ROW production output may encourage China to eventually remove lanthanum and cerium from the export quota system, effectively forcing Molycorp, Lynas, and all other rare earth mining hopefuls to compete with Bayan Obo s extremely low production costs. Similarly, market players within the rare earth industry must recognize the criticality of heavy rare earth supply. Projects focusing on light rare earth deposits will be entering a heavily saturated market and forced to compete with both Molycorp and Lynas, as well as Bayan Obo s substantial production cost advantages. With no substantial ROW mines capable of producing HREOs coming online in the next 2 years, cutbacks in illegal production, and China taking measures to potentially further constrict the supply of these materials, projects touting high percentages of HREO products that can be quickly and cost efficiently developed clearly hold a tremendous advantage. Rare Earth Demand Analysis and Projections A global economic downturn as well as the massive price increases in H and H led to sharp reductions in rare earth purchasing activity for In the first 11 months of that year, just under 50% of the allotted export quotas were utilized at 14,750t. Price levels for the majority of rare earth compounds have seen steady declines since August 2011; however, rates remain substantially higher than pre-2010 levels. Despite recent declines in global purchasing, a sustained growth in

5 demand is expected on nearly all rare earths through the exception being lanthanum, cerium, and praseodymium given a global push for lighter materials and energy efficiency. Further price increases are expected to be driven by a surge in Chinese domestic demand over the next four years, which can be expected to reach 125,000t/y by 2014, with full global demand at 165,000t/y. Table 1: Rare Earth Demand 2010e 2011e 2012e 2013p 2014p Chinese Demand 90,000t 80,000t 85,000t 105,000t 125,000t ROW Demand 35,000t 25,000t 30,000t 35,000t 40,000t Total Demand 125,000t 105,000t 115,000t 140,000t 165,000t Source based on Asian Metal estimates (e) /projections (p) In response to sharp price increases and threats to the availability of heavy rare earth supply, many large downstream users have initiated R&D programs to reduce dependency upon these materials. While the majority of these R&D programs will not yield results in the next 3-4 years, many hopeful suppliers fear the success of these programs may effectively reduce their total downstream consumption. Heavy rare earth materials are critical to many of their downstream applications and efforts to reduce or altogether eliminate their usage, especially in the phosphor and NdFeB magnet industries, will require a fundamental restructuring of the final application. The emergence of a substantial and sustainable source of supply for heavy rare earths would help to alleviate any concerns over potential demand destruction. In order to effectively understand future demand for rare earths, it is important to identify and analyze the different downstream sources of demand for individual rare earth materials. The fluid cracking catalyst (FCC) industry serves as the main source of demand for lanthanum and, to a lesser degree cerium. FCCs help in the conversion of heavy crude oil into gasoline; however, following sharp price increases for both materials this past year, several major players in the FCC industry, notably W.R. Grace and Co and Albemarle Corporation, have been able to sharply reduce the amount of rare earth oxides required in catalysts with a minimum loss in efficiency. La-Ni-H batteries, an additional major source of downstream demand for lanthanum, are forecasted to see sharp declines in usage as hybrid vehicles switch to more efficient lithium ion batteries. While certain higher end applications have maintained steady consumption levels, the glass and optical industry saw sharp reductions in buying activity during 2011 as high price levels encouraged consumers to alter production formulas. Declining real demand and increasing production levels indicate the lanthanum oxide market, which is already believed to be in surplus, will see additional price declines through Aside from FCCs, the primary drivers for cerium demand include automotive catalytic converters, polishing powders, and the glass and ceramics industry. While the catalytic converter sector will see sustained growth as a strong Chinese automotive industry and a global push towards reduced emissions drives forward consumption, demand for polishing powders will be fueled by increased global demand for consumer electronics. High price levels this past year resulted in substantial demand destruction for the glass and ceramics industry. Although demand for cerium oxide will see

6 steady growth through the next several years, the market is already awash with surplus material and the added production output from both Molycorp and Lynas will inevitably lead to additional price declines. Demand for praseodymium oxide is primarily fueled by the glass and ceramics industry. Sharp price increases and a declining economy, led to substantial reductions in demand for many of the lower applications, particularly those in the ceramics industry. While praseodymium is also used in NdFeB magnets, its percentage per unit is substantially smaller than that of neodymium. Demand for praseodymium is expected to see limited growth and price levels are expected to depreciate during the next two years. Although neodymium is classified as a light rare earth, given the expanding applications for NdFeB magnets, demand is anticipated to see substantial growth levels despite conservation and substitution efforts over the last 7 months. NdFeB magnets, used in both electric motors and generators, have been critical in the push towards energy efficient technology and the miniaturization of consumer electronics. In 2010, sintered NdFeB magnet production in China reached 100, ,000 tons, up by around 30% compared to NdFeB magnet output in China was only 39,300 tons in 2006 and has averaged a fairly consistent annual growth rate of approximately 30% over the past four years through mid It is estimated that the expansion of the NdFeB magnet industry will soon achieve a yearly growth rate of 20-30% in the next four years given further pressure by North American governments to increase fuel efficiency in vehicles and investment in green energy production. Consumption of NdFeB magnets could likely increase dramatically as China looks to produce more electricity through wind power, which can use up to 1,000kg of neodymium in one turbine. The TREO grade for Molycorp, Lynas, and Great Western Minerals contains substantial amounts of neodymium oxide and ROW production output for this material is expected to see substantial climbs as these mines come online. Nevertheless, while both Molycorp and Great Western Minerals (Molycorp with Neo Materials and Great Western Minerals with Less Common Metals) have adopted a vertically integrated processing strategy which will enable them to effectively produce NdFeB materials, global demand is still expected to outpace supply during the next 1-2 years and neodymium oxide prices should see sustained increases. Demand for dysprosium, a heavy rare earth, is also expected to experience strong growth over the next several years as it enables NdFeB magnets to perform at high temperatures, a quality critical to hybrid car motors, wind turbines, and a wide range of other applications. Modern wind turbines and Hybrid Electric Vehicles (HEVs), both rely heavily upon dysprosium enhanced NdFeB magnets, with wind turbines requiring roughly 25 kg of Dy per MW and HEVs requiring roughly 150g per vehicle. The Chinese ionic clay deposits, the only rare earth ore that has any recoverable dysprosium, have diminished in availability as state-owned mines cut back production and provincial governments cracked down on illegal operations. Substantial production from new mining ventures is not expected in the short-term, and the material should likely remain in short supply. Europium and yttrium, which see usage in phosphor and fluorescent powders for the lighting

7 industry, were in relatively low demand in early Through the end of last year, however, Chinese domestic demand skyrocketed for both materials following the rapid growth of the energy efficient lighting sector, which worldwide grew more than 50% in 2010 and an additional 9.8% YOY growth in Chinese domestic demand should continue to climb, especially as GE and Philips, two of the world s largest lighting manufacturers, expand operations in the country. On January 1, 2012, the United States began phasing out incandescent light bulbs in favor of more highly efficient bulbs. Markets are expected to see a massive transition towards phosphor and fluorescent lighting, in particular compact fluorescent lighting (CFL), which will translate into significant increases in demand for both yttrium and europium during the next several years. Similar policy decisions are expected from China in the next 3-4 years, which should keep demand strong for the next 6-7 years. Terbium should see steady price appreciation as its application in phosphor powders expands. Terbium will also see a pull on available supply due to increased usage with dysprosium in NdFeB magnets, a measure to increase heat resistivity. In February 2011, China Telecom, one of the Chinese state-owned communication giants, announced it would be overhauling its fiber optic network, increasing its coverage from 10 million to 100 million families by The fiber optics expansion will significantly increase demand for erbium. Gadolinium should see steady growth in consumption through its use in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and nuclear control rods in nuclear power plants. Magnetic refrigeration represents a huge potential sector of demand for the material although the commercial application of the technology is likely at least 2 years away. Although the market for samarium-cobalt magnets is not growing nearly as fast as the market for NdFeB magnets, samarium supplies have still come under pressure since late last year. Samarium-cobalt magnets are, in some applications, a solid alternative to NdFeB, and samarium should see more demand especially as neodymium costs keep moving higher. Scandium has seen more usage in the past five years with higher demand for consumer goods composed of aluminum-scandium alloys. There are also promising applications for scandium fuel cells and high-temperature alloys in the aerospace industry that will drive more consumption. Other heavy rare earths, ytterbium, thulium, lutetium and holmium, are the thinnest traded rare earth materials at present. Thulium, for example, used in the manufacturing of certain specialty lasers, sees only several hundred kilos of production per year; almost none of which is exported internationally. Since there are only limited, highly specialized applications for these four materials, fluctuation in prices over the next four years is likely to remain fairly low.

8 Table 2: FOB China Prices for Selected Rare Earths 99%min oxide Current price 28/12/ forecast Percentage change Unless noted (per kg) Ce $10.50 $ % Dy $ $1, % Er $70.00 $ % Eu $1, $2, % Gd $85.00 $ % Ho* (99.5%min) $77.00 $ % La $10.50 $ % Nd $75.50 $ % Pr $73.50 $ % Sc* (99.5%min) $4, $5, % Sm $24.50 $ % Tb (99.9%min) $1, $2, % Y (99.999%min) $33.00 $ % Yb* $60.00 $ % *Chinese domestic market price; USD1.00=6.338RMB Over the next 4-5 years, Strong projected growth in the NdFeB magnet industry as well as the phosphor and fluorescent powder industry will translate into sustained increases in the consumption of neodymium, dysprosium, terbium, yttrium, and europium. Price levels for these critical materials are anticipated to see similar long term increases. While many of the other mid-heavy rare earth materials Gd, Er, Ho, Lu, and Sc will not see the same explosive growth as the above five, they are critical inputs to high-end applications and will similarly see sustained growth and price increases. Reductions in the use of rare earth oxides by the FCC industry as well as the glass and ceramics industry have and will likely continue to damage downstream demand for lanthanum, cerium, and praseodymium. Efforts towards developing future ROW supply sources must consequently be focused on deposits with substantial TREO grades. In the next few years, the development of a substantial mine with high grades of these critical materials is necessary to void the current supply threat plaguing many of the heavy rare earth-reliant industries. The development of such a mine will help to foster demand growth for critical and heavy rare earths and will diminish the urgency for R&D programs to develop alternative materials. Critical Challenges Facing ROW Projects Based on the facts and projected market conditions outlined in the above sections, potential ROW rare earth mining projects must take the following issues into consideration: - There will be a surplus of lanthanum and cerium on the market - There will be a shortage of heavy rare earths - Neodymium, dysprosium, yttrium, europium, and terbium will see sustained increases in both consumption and price Emphasis must consequently be shifted away from projects without significant grades of HREOs and

9 efforts must be refocused on the development of a substantial and sustainable mine featuring high percentages of critical rare earth oxides. Aside from the actual material content of the deposit, potential rare earth mining projects must also consider the following factors: - Rare earth ore must be converted to REOs before it is marketable - Processing hard rock rare earth ore is complex and expensive - There are few rare earth separation plants outside of China - A hard rock rare earth separation plant is expensive and takes a long time to develop and construct - The presence of dangerous by products such as radioactive thorium and uranium Tantalus Rare Earths AG (TAE DE) project in Northwestern Madagascar has emerged as one of the most promising rare earth projects within the rare earth industry. The project is situated near a major highway, international airport, as well as a major operating sea port. Tantalus is amongst the handful of RE mining projects in possession of an ionic clay-like deposit, and out of these projects, is easily the largest and the farthest along in terms of development. Testing to date indicates rare earth bearing lateritic clays at the Tantalus project share close similarities with Chinese ionic clays. Whereas typical hard rock deposits require crushing, grinding, and complex processing techniques, ionic clays are easily processed into rare earth concentrate using simple leaching methods and consequently benefit from sharply reduced production costs. Simple metallurgy will enable Tantalus to essentially leap frog other rare earth mining ventures still in the process of developing complex processing techniques for hard rock deposits. The clays are largely devoid of dangerous radioactive by-products and consequently avoid the controversial issue of disposing of radioactive waste. Tantalus clays will not only benefit from sharply reduced base production costs, but more importantly, Tantalus does not need to develop the complex and expensive processing techniques and facilities required to process alternative rare earth ores and to dispose of radioactive waste. In terms of ore processing, both the development and operation of the Tantalus mine is achievable at a fraction of the cost of other sand or hard rock rare earth deposit. The Tantalus project is rich in heavy rare earths, with roughly 20% of TREOs consisting of HREOs. Extremely low production costs render the low TREO grade of the ore, roughly 0.8%, an insignificant issue. Although recent drilling samples put the current inferred resources estimate at roughly 130mt of rare earth bearing lateritic clays with a total of 104kt of REOs, outstanding drilling results are expected to push the project up to 200kt REO by mid Tantalus is confident further sampling will yield an inferred resource estimate of 350kt REO before the end of the year. Although not yet verified, current estimates put the TREO content of the Table 3: Tantalus Project Value Estimates Basket Price ($/kg) In-situ TREO ($/t(mr)) Mineral Resource data collected from Tantalus Reports; Prices derived from Asian Metal Tantalus project at as much as 1.5mt, which, with an annual production capacity of roughly 15,000t/y, yields a mine life of nearly 100 years. The extraction of cerium via the ion exchange 65kt TREO Value ($) Estimated 220kt TREO Value ($) Present Value bn 16.7bn 2014 Value bn 35.35bn

10 mechanism in the leaching process is relatively ineffectual, and given the currently low value of the REE, Tantalus will likely choose to simply refrain from extracting the cerium. The figures in Table 3 and all further calculations will consequently assume cerium oxide is not included in the REO basket, thus pushing down ore grade and total mineral resource reserves. Nevertheless, these figures suggest the Tantalus project would be able to produce roughly 3,000t/y of HREOs, just 200 tons shy of the current approved Chinese heavy rare earth export quota (3,204t), through the remainder of the century. At present, several rare earth mining projects, notably Molycorp, Lynas, and Great Western Minerals, are developing vertically integrated rare earth supply chains. For each of these projects, the development of a separation facility and custom processing techniques was essential to convert their ore to marketable REOs. The Tantalus MOU with ThyssenKrupp Metallurgical Products GmbH represents an important step towards the creation of one of the above mentioned vertically integrated supply chains. An exceptional network of market participants in both the raw materials and processing industries along with the pooled resources and technical expertise of the ThyssenKrupp corporate group have enabled ThyssenKrupp Metallurgical Products GmbH to emerge as one of the leading global commodities traders. Through the combination of current holdings and subsidiaries along with the perpetual expansion of products and services, ThyssenKrupp Metallurgical Products GmbH is capable of providing solutions for virtually any application in the metallurgical industry. As outlined in the recently released MOU, ThyssenKrupp plans to investigate the jointly development of a rare earth separation facility and will leverage its extensive experience and knowledge within the metallurgical sector to identify the most practical business model for the Tantalus Project. Given the extremely simple metallurgy of the clays, Tantalus and ThyssenKrupp could feasibly develop and install the necessary separation facilities within 6-12 months with a production date in Economies of scale may even enable the project to effectively undercut Chinese production costs. Conclusion Supply and demand projections for the rare earth sector suggest the content, composition, and magnitude of the Tantalus deposit make it one of the leading RE mining projects in the industry. Whereas some of the prominent projects emphasizing light rare earths and lacking significant percentages of HREOs are expected to see minimal increases in product basket value during the next two years, rapidly rising demand for certain critical rare earths, primarily dysprosium, europium and yttrium, will help to push up the Tantalus basket price by roughly 50%. Furthermore, the presence of lateritic clays significantly reduces ore processing costs as well as the required start-up capital expenditures. In addition, the Tantalus-ThyssenKrupp partnership will Table 4: ROW Mine Basket Values ($/kg) ROW Mines Present 2014 % Change Moly Corp % Lynas Corp % Great Western % Tantalus % Mineral resource data derived from company reports and TMR Advanced Rare Earth Project Index; Prices derived from Asian Metal

11 fast track project development, making production by early 2014 a real possibility. ThyssenKrupp s wealth of experience in the metallurgical product sector will enable Tantalus to optimize rare earth production, and potentially eventually compete with Chinese production. With an estimated total resource base of 1.5mt and an annual production capacity of 15,000t, the Tantalus project has the potential to become the dominant ROW supply source for heavy rare earth oxides within the few years. All statements in this analysis, other than statements of historical facts, that address future market developments, government actions and events, are forward-looking statements. Asian Metal believes that outcomes in such forward-looking statements are based on fair expectations and assumptions but are not a guarantee of future performance. Actual results may differ from forward looking statements due to shifts in government policy, the development of new rare earth technologies or substitutes, or other changes in economic conditions. This report, prepared by Asian Metal analysts, is strictly an assessment of the rare earth market and is not intended to be used as investment advice. Asian Metal will not be held liable for any loss as a result of investments in the rare earth industry, including, but not limited to, commodities and publically traded shares. Parties interested in investing in the rare earth industry should seek the advice of an experienced professional. The reader of this document assumes all responsibility of this market material and information. Statistics used in this analysis, including current usage and pricing data, come from Asian Metal. Asian Metal, founded in 2000, is a global information company with leading positions and recognized brands in the metal and steel research and consulting industry. The Asian Metal team consists of professional metal experts within the industry and serves over 100,000 companies from close to 200 countries worldwide. Asian Metal's mission is to help companies in the metal and steel industry make informed business decisions by providing accurate concluded prices, up to date news and comprehensive analysis. Asian Metal's price assessments for metals are taken as benchmark prices for contracts signed by major players of the industry in the world market.