Harena Rare Earths (LSE:HREE) has signed the Cahier des Charges Minières (CCM), or Mining Terms and Conditions, with Madagascar's Ministry of Mines.
The agreement formalises the company's technical, financial, environmental and social commitments under Madagascar's 2023 Mining Code and completes the mining regulatory process for its Ampasindava ionic clay rare earth project, in which Harena holds a 100% interest.
The signing follows a positive pre-feasibility study announced on 26 January and unlocks the project's next phase, including a proof-of-concept pilot plant and onsite laboratory.
Harena will now prioritise environmental and social studies, stakeholder engagement and public consultation needed to secure an environmental permit under Madagascar's MECIE Decree and International Finance Corporation performance standards.
The company's recent $4.84 million Project Development Facility from the US International Development Finance Corporation will fund this next stage of work.
Ampasindava hosts one of the largest known ionic clay rare earth deposits outside China, with meaningful concentrations of the magnet metals neodymium, praseodymium, dysprosium and terbium, materials used in permanent magnets for defence, robotics and clean energy applications.
"Signing the CCM is a defining regulatory milestone," said Ivan Murphy, Harena's executive chairman.
"It gives us a clear framework to advance responsibly in Madagascar and, critically, clears the path to our Proof of Concept pilot plant and onsite laboratory."
Murphy said the company would complete all permits and authorisations consistent with its environmental and social commitments before entering commercial production.
News Intelligence what this means for the company
Harena has signed Madagascar's formal mining terms and conditions (CCM), completing the regulatory gateway to build a pilot plant at Ampasindava—one of the world's largest ionic clay rare earth deposits outside China. The milestone unlocks the next phase of work, funded by the $4.84 million DFC Project Development Facility, and removes a material permitting hurdle that could have delayed or blocked the project.
This clears a critical regulatory risk for an early-stage developer in a jurisdiction with limited mining infrastructure. Harena now faces the harder task—securing environmental permits and completing feasibility studies before any capital commitment—but the CCM signing materially de-risks the path to a pilot plant and removes a binary gate that could have closed the project entirely.
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