June 16 (Reuters) – Phoenix Tailings said on Tuesday the Pentagon’s Office of Strategic Capital has conditionally committed $500 million in long-term debt financing to the company to construct a rare earth midstream processing plant in the U.S.
Here are more details:
• The federal commitment anchors a $1 billion project to build the “Freedom Facility” which will process raw mined concentrates and recycled scrap into critical light and heavy rare earth metals.
• The initiative aims to reduce U.S. military and commercial dependence on critical minerals refined overseas, particularly in China.
• The rare earths processing startup, backed by BMW and Sumitomo, aims to start operations at the plant in 2028. The final loan remains subject to customary financial, legal, and technical due diligence.
(Reporting by Dharna Bafna in Bengaluru; Editing by Leroy Leo)
