News Summary
The most recent news release, dated December 11, 2025, highlights the rare earth element (REE) potential at Century Lithium’s Angel Island Lithium Project in Nevada. The company reports positive metallurgical test results for REE recovery as a by-product. Using a chloride-based process and ion-exchange, high recoveries (exceeding 97%) of selected REEs from solution were demonstrated. The claystone bulk sample used for testing contained 239 ppm (0.024%) total rare earth oxides (TREO). Century Lithium states that these levels could “contribute meaningfully to North America’s critical mineral supply chain and revenue streams from Angel Island” but explicitly notes that an “economic evaluation is pending further work.”
This follows a December 2, 2025 news release that also reported over 97% recovery of REEs and critical metals (excluding cesium) from primary lithium leach solutions using ion-exchange, achieving selectivity against lithium without impacting the core lithium recovery process. The Senior Vice President, Metallurgy, noted that this validates the belief in “meaningful secondary-value opportunities” and the potential to strengthen the project’s economics.
Material Impact
The most recent news is a follow-up to previous technical announcements regarding rare earth element recovery. While confirming strong technical recovery rates (over 97%) and noting the presence of REEs (0.024% TREO) in the claystone, the news explicitly defers any economic assessment, stating it is “pending further work.” This indicates that while the technical feasibility of extracting REEs as a by-product is proven, its financial contribution to the Angel Island project’s economics remains unquantified and speculative at this stage.
In the context of the overall project development, this is a positive incremental technical de-risking step. It suggests potential for additional revenue streams, which could enhance the project’s net present value (NPV) and internal rate of return (IRR) in a future updated feasibility study. However, without concrete figures on expected revenue contribution, capital expenditure implications, or operational costs associated with REE recovery, the immediate financial impact is not material. It aligns with the company’s continuous efforts to optimize its process and explore secondary value opportunities, as detailed in prior releases regarding DLE improvements, lithium hydroxide production, and an optimization study for CAPEX reduction.
The consistent message of high recovery rates for REEs from the primary leach solutions (December 2 and December 11 news) validates the technical team’s capabilities but the absence of economic impact assessment means it does not significantly change the investment thesis or warrant a “Material – Positive” rating at this time. It is a positive operational update, but not a definitive financial game-changer.
Catalysts
* Updated Feasibility Study (FS): The company previously announced an optimization study suggesting up to 25% CAPEX reduction and has raised funds to complete an updated FS. The completion and release of this updated FS, incorporating DLE improvements, potential lithium hydroxide production economics, and now, the rare earth by-product potential, will be a critical catalyst. Investors should look for detailed economic figures, including updated CAPEX, OPEX, NPV, and IRR.
* Economic Evaluation of REE By-product: The most recent news explicitly states this is pending. Quantifying the potential revenue, costs, and overall economic contribution of REE recovery will be key to understanding its true impact.
* Definitive Offtake Agreement for Sodium Hydroxide: The non-binding MOU with Orica for sodium hydroxide offtake needs to be formalized. This agreement is noted as underpinning low operating costs for the primary lithium carbonate product.
* Permitting Progress: Continued progress on the Plan of Operations (PoO) submission to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and advancement through the NEPA review process, especially given the FAST-41 status, will be important. Any delays or significant hurdles would be negative.
* Strategic Partnerships and Funding: Century Lithium will likely continue seeking strategic partners and government funding for the substantial capital required for project construction.
Materiality Conclusion
The news about rare earth potential, while technically positive and indicative of potential additional revenue streams, is not immediately material in a financial sense. The explicit mention that “economic evaluation is pending further work” means it doesn’t offer quantifiable improvements to the project’s economics yet. It reinforces the project’s technical strengths and its potential to contribute to the critical minerals supply chain, but its impact on the company’s stock price will depend on the eventual economic quantification. Therefore, it is categorized as `Routine – Positive` due to its nature as a technical validation without immediate financial impact.
