Lindian Resources Locks in 20-Year Offtake Deal to Supply EU Rare Earth Refinery
Key Takeaways
- Lindian has executed a binding 10-year offtake with Carester for a minimum of 70% of SEGH Carbonate production annually, up to 8,750 dry metric tonnes per year, with options to extend the term to 20 years.
- The 8,000tpa REO solvent extraction and oxide separation facility at Stepnogorsk, Kazakhstan will be the subject of a Definitive Feasibility Study targeting completion in Q4 2026, with Carester and Tetra Tech Coffey jointly advancing the work.
- Carester's Caremag Refinery — the named destination for Lindian's SEGH Carbonate — is backed by €216 million in French and Japanese government funding and targets approximately 15% of global dysprosium and terbium oxide production.
- Western forecast prices for dysprosium (US$541/kg) and terbium (US$1,988/kg) are running at roughly double current spot prices, and the SX Facility is specifically designed to capture those separated oxide premiums over mixed carbonate.
- Four major project milestones are scheduled within Q4 2026: SARECO full commissioning (October), Kangankunde Stage 1 commissioning (November), the SX Facility DFS (December), and the Kangankunde Stage 2 DFS (December).
Lindian secures binding offtake and technology partnership with Carester for 8,000tpa rare earth oxide separation facility
Lindian Resources (ASX: LIN) has executed two landmark agreements with Carester SAS, a leading global rare earth processing and separation specialist: a Technology and Engineering Services Agreement and a long-term binding Offtake Agreement. Together with Tetra Tech Coffey, Carester will advance a Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS) for an 8,000 tonne per annum REO nameplate capacity solvent extraction and oxide separation facility (SX Facility) at Stepnogorsk, Kazakhstan, targeted for completion in Q4 2026. These agreements connect Lindian’s Kazakhstan production platform directly to the Caremag Refinery in Lacq, France, a facility backed by €216 million in French and Japanese government funding and targeting approximately 15% of global dysprosium and terbium oxide production.
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What the Carester partnership delivers for Lindian
A 10-year binding offtake with extension options
The Offtake Agreement carries an initial 10-year supply term commencing on the date of first commercial production, with options to extend for two further five-year periods, for a total potential term of up to 20 years. Under the agreement, Carester commits to purchase a minimum of 70% of SEGH Carbonate produced from SARECO in each contract year, subject to an annual cap of 8,750 dry metric tonnes per annum. Carester is also granted a right of first refusal (RoFR) over 70% of Mixed Heavy Rare Earths Carbonate (MHREC) production from SARECO once that facility is producing MHREC in commercial quantities.
Pricing is linked to the Carester Realised Price for dysprosium (Dy), terbium (Tb), and other economically extracted elements such as yttrium (Y), modified by a payability factor. Critically, if Carester or its affiliates receive any direct or indirect governmental price floor support, that support must be included in the realised price as applicable to each relevant oxide.
| Term | Duration | Volume Commitment | Product | Pricing Mechanism |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Initial term | 10 years from first commercial production | 70% of SEGH Carbonate produced, up to 8,750 dmtpa | SEGH Carbonate | Carester Realised Price for Dy, Tb, Y, modified by payability factor; includes any government price floor support |
| Extension options | Two further 5-year periods (up to 20 years total) | By mutual agreement | SEGH Carbonate | As above |
| RoFR | On commencement of MHREC commercial production | 70% of MHREC produced from SARECO | Mixed Heavy Rare Earths Carbonate (MHREC) | Exercisable within defined time parameters |
Technology partnership spanning DFS through to operations
The Technology and Engineering Services Agreement gives Lindian access to Carester’s specialist expertise across the full project lifecycle. Carester’s scope of services includes:
- Process design, simulation, separation technology, flowsheet development, mass and energy balances
- Review and optimisation of the existing SARECO operation, including plant compatibility and residue management
- EPCM support, start-up, commissioning, and ongoing process optimisation
- Simulation and digital twin capability through development and into operations
Tetra Tech Coffey provides multidisciplinary engineering, feasibility-level CAPEX and OPEX, and overall DFS integration. All intellectual property developed in connection with the services (Project IP) will be jointly owned by Carester and Lindian as tenants in common in equal shares. The agreement carries an initial term of one year, with Lindian holding an option to extend for a further three years.
Why heavy rare earths matter — and why Stepnogorsk is the right place to separate them
The case for heavy rare earths: Dy, Tb and Y
Dysprosium (Dy), terbium (Tb) and yttrium (Y) are heavy rare earth elements critical to high-performance permanent magnets used in electric vehicles, wind turbines, robotics and artificial intelligence applications. The gap between current spot prices and Western forecast prices illustrates the substantial value uplift that separated oxide production can capture over mixed carbonate.
Western forecast prices versus current AMI spot prices are as follows (sourced from CRU, Adamas Intelligence, and Petra estimates as footnoted in the announcement):
- Dy: Western forecast US$541/kg vs. AMI spot US$249/kg
- Tb: Western forecast US$1,988/kg vs. AMI spot US$1,127/kg
- Y: Western forecast US$383/kg vs. AMI spot ~US$30/kg
Moving from mixed carbonate to separated oxides captures far more of these price premiums. That is the core commercial logic behind the SX Facility.
Why Stepnogorsk is a competitive brownfield advantage
The Stepnogorsk industrial complex provides potential material cost advantages over comparable greenfield Western separation developments. Key brownfield advantages include:
- Existing power, gas, water, rail, and reagent infrastructure, including locally available sulphuric acid supply
- Skilled labour force already present within the established industrial precinct
- Dedicated rail spur for reagent delivery, concentrate receival, and product export
- Approximately 15,500m² of warehousing secured as part of the SARECO transaction
- SX Facility designed at approximately 1.5x SARECO capacity, providing room for third-party feedstock and future expansion
Kazakhstan Government support adds another layer of strategic assurance. The Ministry of Industry and Construction has committed its support for the project’s development, recognising the 8,000tpa REO separation facility as strategically important to Kazakhstan’s downstream rare earth ambitions.
A vertically integrated mine-to-oxide platform taking shape
The integrated value chain — from Kangankunde to Lacq, France
The full value chain runs from Kangankunde Monazite Concentrate (Malawi) through SARECO hydrometallurgical processing in Kazakhstan, producing MREC and PLS, which feeds into the 8,000tpa REO SX Facility at Stepnogorsk, which in turn produces SEGH Carbonate that is sent to the Caremag Refinery at Lacq, France. SEGH will be produced alongside separated neodymium (Nd) and praseodymium (Pr) oxides from the SX Facility, creating multiple higher-value revenue streams across the chain.
The Kangankunde Rare Earths Project in Malawi anchors the upstream end of this value chain, supplying the monazite concentrate that feeds into SARECO hydrometallurgical processing before the material moves into the Kazakhstan SX Facility.
Caremag is a joint venture between JOGMEC, Iwatani Corporation and Carester, with €216 million in secured financing comprising €110 million from Japanese investors and €106 million of French Government support. At full production, Caremag is targeting approximately 600 tonnes per annum of dysprosium and terbium oxides, representing around 15% of global production, together with approximately 800 tonnes per annum of NdPr oxides. Caremag is targeting commencement of operations beginning 2027.
The SX Facility is intended to be funded internally from cash flows from Kangankunde and SARECO operations, together with closing cash and undrawn Nico facilities of A$125 million (per the 30 July 2026 Quarterly Activities Report).
Near-term catalysts
- SARECO full commissioning: October 2026
- Kangankunde Stage 1 commissioning: November 2026
- SX Facility DFS completion: Q4 2026 (December 2026)
- Kangankunde Stage 2 DFS: December 2026
- Caremag operations commencement: beginning 2027
Robert Martin, Executive Chairman, Lindian Resources
“The agreement with Carester represents another significant step in Lindian’s strategy to move further downstream to expand our markets and to capture more of the value from the rare earths that we produce. Following our acquisition of 100% of the SARECO MREC facility, we now have an established processing platform from which we can produce mixed rare earth concentrate and mixed rare earth carbonates as we move towards the realisation of producing separated oxides.
“Carester brings both world-class separation expertise and a long-term route to market for our heavy rare earth production. Its Caremag facility is backed by €216 million of French and Japanese funding and is targeting approximately 15% of global dysprosium and terbium oxide production, demonstrating the strategic importance of the supply chain that we are building.
“We have stage 1 of Kangankunde on track for commissioning in November this year, our SARECO preventative maintenance programs are now under way for full commissioning in October this year, Kangankunde stage 2 DFS and the DFS for the oxide facility both also due in December this year which in turn is positioning Lindian to be one of the few truly vertically integrated mine to separated oxides producers globally.”
Frédéric Carencotte, President, Carester
“This strategic partnership marks another step in Carester’s strong commitment to supporting the development of a secure and sustainable diversified rare earth industry. Lindian’s established SARECO processing platform in Kazakhstan, combined with our separation technology will provide a long-term MHREC and SEGH feedstock security for our French plant and demonstrates how close industrial cooperation can reinforce the critical raw materials value chain. The Aktau and HREE feedstock processed at SARECO will provide critical feed for production of DyTb oxides for high-performance permanent magnets.”
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About Lindian Resources (ASX: LIN)
Lindian Resources (ASX: LIN) is an Australian-based critical minerals company with world-class rare earths and bauxite assets in Malawi and Guinea, with the Kangankunde Rare Earths Project in Malawi as the cornerstone asset. Following an A$91.5 million institutional placement in August 2025 and a further A$100 million institutional placement in April 2026, the company is positioned as fully funded to deliver Stage 1 development, with first Kangankunde production targeted for Q4 2026. A Stage 2 DFS is also advancing in parallel.
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