NeoTerra Group (LSE:TERA), the African critical minerals exploration and development company, has reported a significant metallurgical advance at its Monte Muambe Project in Mozambique, with initial flotation testing confirming that fluorite and gallium-bearing minerals respond differently during processing, opening a practical route to recover three commodities from a single integrated flowsheet.
Fourteen scout flotation tests at Maelgwyn's metallurgical laboratory have defined a two-stage flotation pathway to produce acid-grade fluorspar while separating heavy rare earth and gallium-bearing materials. Gallium was upgraded by approximately 100% in first-stage tailings relative to run-of-mine material, demonstrating a potential low-cost pre-concentration route for a metal facing acute supply constraints outside China.
The advance arrives as non-Chinese heavy rare earth prices accelerate sharply. European Yttrium oxide prices recently reached over US$1,000 per kilogram, approximately 140 times their year-on-year level, driven by tightening Chinese export controls that are expected to tighten further from November. Monte Muambe hosts individual intercepts grading up to 4,304 ppm Yttrium oxide within its fluorspar system.
The US$1.875 million US Trade and Development Agency-funded prefeasibility programme is moving toward execution, with leading international engineering groups shortlisted and contract award expected within weeks. NeoTerra is also in advanced follow-up discussions with a Japanese potential strategic partner, with CEO Cedric Simonet stating the company aims to "materialise this interest through formal agreements over the coming months."
Initial gallium hydrometallurgical results from SGS Lakefields in Canada are expected in July.
