# Namibia Critical Metals Successfully Completes Hydromet Pilot Plant Test Work for the Lofdal Heavy Rare Earth Deposit; JOGMEC Increases Budget

Canonical Atlas analysis: https://atlas-staging.minestarters.com/news/namibia-critical-metals-successfully-completes-hydromet-pilot-plant-test-work-fo--f6678240-6271-49ed-8bf8-9cc8fd8aa920

Original source: https://money.tmx.com/en/quote/NMI/news/5068582021396452/namibia-critical-metals-successfully-completes-hydromet-pilot-plant-test-work-fo

Publisher: tmx

Original announcement: 2025-01-22T12:30:00.000Z

Analysis by Minestarters Atlas

Atlas analysis published: Unknown date

Atlas analysis updated: Unknown date

- Company: Namibia Critical Metals Inc.

- Ticker: NMI

- Exchange: TSX

- Region: Namibia

- Primary commodity: Rare earth elements

- Secondary commodities: Terbium, Dysprosium, Yttrium, Uranium, Thorium, Scandium

- Document categories: Metallurgy

- Extracted: 2026-08-22 03:40:31 UTC

Narrative sentiment: 0.80 · Bullish

## Minestarters Atlas summary

Namibia Critical Metals has successfully completed hydrometallurgical pilot plant test work at SGS Lakefield, resulting in a simplified flowsheet for the Lofdal HREE project. The new process reduces reagent consumption and achieves high recoveries for terbium and dysprosium. Additionally, JV partner JOGMEC has increased its budget commitment by $550,000 CDN.

Reasoning: Successful pilot plant scale-up demonstrated significant flowsheet simplification and high recoveries for key HREEs, supported by increased budget commitment from JOGMEC.

- Positive factor: flowsheet simplification

- Positive factor: reduced reagent consumption

- Positive factor: high recovery rates

- Positive factor: increased JV funding

- Negative factor: inflationary costs mentioned

Facts used in scoring: 5

## Classification and evidence

**High Recovery**

Polarity: positive

Definition: Recovery at or above the exceptional band for the commodity and processing route.

Why it applies: 94% recovery for Tb and Dy achieved in acid bake tests.

Evidence · text

> recoveries of around 94% terbium \(Tb\) and dysprosium \(Dy\)

**Mill Route**

Polarity: neutral

Definition: Processing via mill or concentrator \(CIL, CIP, tank leach, flotation\).

Why it applies: Test work involved flotation concentrate and hydrometallurgical processing.

Evidence · text

> using a 93 kg pilot plant flotation concentrate sample

## Extracted facts

Stored fact records: 5. Some facts used in scoring do not have a stored record.

## Metallurgical Results (5)

### acid bake

[Link to this fact](https://atlas-staging.minestarters.com/news/namibia-critical-metals-successfully-completes-hydromet-pilot-plant-test-work-fo--f6678240-6271-49ed-8bf8-9cc8fd8aa920#fact-metallurgical-facts-0)

terbium

#### Identity

- Commodity: terbium
- Ticker: NMI

#### Test Work

- Program Status: detailed
- Test Type: acid bake
- Sample: bench scale hydrometallurgical tests \(two-stage acid bake\)

#### Recovery

- Recovery: 94 %
- Recovery Basis: actual\_test
- Head Grade: 2.65
- Head Grade Unit: % TREO

#### Review

- Needs Review: No
- Historical: No

#### Dates

- Event date: 2025-01-22T00:00:00.000Z

Reasoning: 94% recovery is exceptional for the commodity.

- Positive factor: high recovery

Evidence · text

> recoveries of around 94% terbium \(Tb\) and dysprosium \(Dy\)

### acid bake

[Link to this fact](https://atlas-staging.minestarters.com/news/namibia-critical-metals-successfully-completes-hydromet-pilot-plant-test-work-fo--f6678240-6271-49ed-8bf8-9cc8fd8aa920#fact-metallurgical-facts-1)

dysprosium

#### Identity

- Commodity: dysprosium
- Ticker: NMI

#### Test Work

- Program Status: detailed
- Test Type: acid bake
- Sample: bench scale hydrometallurgical tests \(two-stage acid bake\)

#### Recovery

- Recovery: 94 %
- Recovery Basis: actual\_test
- Head Grade: 2.65
- Head Grade Unit: % TREO

#### Review

- Needs Review: No
- Historical: No

#### Dates

- Event date: 2025-01-22T00:00:00.000Z

Reasoning: 94% recovery is exceptional for the commodity.

- Positive factor: high recovery

Evidence · text

> recoveries of around 94% terbium \(Tb\) and dysprosium \(Dy\)

### Fact 3

[Link to this fact](https://atlas-staging.minestarters.com/news/namibia-critical-metals-successfully-completes-hydromet-pilot-plant-test-work-fo--f6678240-6271-49ed-8bf8-9cc8fd8aa920#fact-metallurgical-facts-2)

dysprosium

#### Identity

- Commodity: dysprosium
- Ticker: NMI

#### Test Work

- Sample: REE carbonate precipitate from mini pilot plant

#### Recovery

- Conc. Grade: 3.24
- Conc. Grade Unit: %

#### Review

- Needs Review: No
- Historical: No

#### Dates

- Event date: 2025-01-22T00:00:00.000Z

Reasoning: Reported grade in the final carbonate product.

- Positive factor: high purity product

Evidence · text

> REE carbonate precipitate was produced containing 3.24% dysprosium

### Fact 4

[Link to this fact](https://atlas-staging.minestarters.com/news/namibia-critical-metals-successfully-completes-hydromet-pilot-plant-test-work-fo--f6678240-6271-49ed-8bf8-9cc8fd8aa920#fact-metallurgical-facts-3)

terbium

#### Identity

- Commodity: terbium
- Ticker: NMI

#### Test Work

- Sample: REE carbonate precipitate from mini pilot plant

#### Recovery

- Conc. Grade: 0.44
- Conc. Grade Unit: %

#### Review

- Needs Review: No
- Historical: No

#### Dates

- Event date: 2025-01-22T00:00:00.000Z

Reasoning: Reported grade in the final carbonate product.

Evidence · text

> REE carbonate precipitate was produced containing... 0.44% terbium

### Fact 5

[Link to this fact](https://atlas-staging.minestarters.com/news/namibia-critical-metals-successfully-completes-hydromet-pilot-plant-test-work-fo--f6678240-6271-49ed-8bf8-9cc8fd8aa920#fact-metallurgical-facts-4)

yttrium

#### Identity

- Commodity: yttrium
- Ticker: NMI

#### Test Work

- Sample: REE carbonate precipitate from mini pilot plant

#### Recovery

- Conc. Grade: 19.3
- Conc. Grade Unit: %

#### Review

- Needs Review: No
- Historical: No

#### Dates

- Event date: 2025-01-22T00:00:00.000Z

Reasoning: Reported grade in the final carbonate product.

Evidence · text

> REE carbonate precipitate was produced containing... 19.3% yttrium

## How Atlas produces this analysis

Minestarters Atlas uses automated extraction to summarize mining announcements, identify reported measurements, and classify supporting evidence. Sentiment reflects the extracted narrative and classification rules; it is an interpretation, not a reported measurement. Evidence quotes and context are provided where available. Missing data, low-confidence results, and review flags indicate limitations. Check the original publisher announcement before relying on an interpretation.