お知らせ • Jun 09
Mont Royal Resources Limited Presents Updated Preliminary Economic Assessment for Ashram Rare Earths and Fluorspar Project
Mont Royal Resources Limited presented an updated Preliminary Economic Assessment for its 100%-owned Ashram Rare Earths and Fluorspar Project located in Nunavik, Québec, Canada. The updated Preliminary Economic Assessment confirms the Ashram Rare Earths Project in Québec, Canada, as a large-scale, long-life North American rare earth development. The project features a large-scale production profile with average annual production of approximately 17,466 tonnes of saleable Rare Earth Oxide (REO), average annual production of approximately 4,035 tonnes of Nd2O3 & Pr2O3 (NdPr), approximately 100 tonnes of Dy2O3 & Tb2O3 (DyTb), and approximately 230 tonnes of Y2O3 (Y). The initial mine life is 30 years supported by a resource base that remains capable of further expansion, with 93% of the resource schedule in the Indicated category. The base case utilises only 25% of the current global resource, highlighting significant long-term expansion optionality. Initial nameplate mill throughput is approximately 1.8Mtpa supporting a long-life open pit operation with a low strip ratio of 0.4:1. The project economics include post-tax NPV8% (real) of CAD 2,030 million, post-tax IRR (real) of 22.0% and post-tax payback of 3.9 years from commencement of production. Life of Mine revenue is approximately CAD 24,638 million and a life-of-mine EBITDA margin of approximately 62.7%. Initial CAPEX is approximately CAD 1,231 million, including 30% contingency, with access infrastructure costs assumed under a contracted/shared logistics model and reflected in operating expenditure. The project is anticipated to benefit from approximately CAD 342 million of refundable Clean Technology Manufacturing Investment Tax Credits incorporated into post-tax cash flows. C1 cash cost is approximately CAD 17.99/kg saleable REO and AISC is approximately CAD 18.58/kg saleable REO. The cost profile is supported by low strip ratio, favourable mineralogy, production of a high-grade rare earth concentrate and an integrated hydrometallurgical refining strategy. Ashram is one of the largest monazite-dominant rare earth deposits in North America. The project offers exposure to a high-value magnet rare earth basket led by NdPr with additional Dy and Tb content, and potential future fluorspar value upside. The integrated development concept incorporates on-site concentration at Ashram and downstream hydrometallurgical refining in Saguenay, Québec. The project is located in Québec, one of the world’s leading mining jurisdictions. Ashram is well positioned to support Western government and industry initiatives aimed at establishing secure critical minerals supply chains outside China. Additional value upside includes potential inclusion of a dedicated fluorspar recovery circuit in future studies, broader district exploration upside across additional targets within the Eldor carbonatite complex, including satellite targets such as Mallard, potential future inclusion of higher-value zones, including the BD Zone, subject to further test work and study, downstream and strategic partnership opportunities, and opportunity to optimise road access costs. A regional shared infrastructure strategy is being evaluated as a means of reducing access road costs through potential collaboration with other mining projects, government agencies, and First Nations. The next steps include progression toward a Pre-Feasibility Study, targeted to commence in the second half of calendar year 2026, ongoing metallurgical optimisation, engineering refinement, and workstreams to further de-risk the flowsheet and development pathway, advancement of environmental baseline, permitting and stakeholder engagement programs across both the Ashram and Saguenay development footprint, and continued engagement regarding offtake, downstream and strategic partnership opportunities. The updated Preliminary Economic Assessment uses the updated JORC Mineral Resource Estimate for the Ashram Deposit released on October 1, 2025. Using a base case, net metal return cut-off of CAD 287/tonne, the Mineral Resource Estimate defines 73.2 million tonnes of Indicated Resources grading 1.89% Total Rare Earth Oxides and 131.1 million tonnes of Inferred Resources grading 1.91% Total Rare Earth Oxides. The resource exhibits a favourable rare-earth distribution, with NdPr accounting for approximately 21% of Total Rare Earth Oxides and meaningful contributions from the critical heavy rare earths Tb and Dy. Mineralisation remains open laterally and at depth, and the estimated pit shell outlines a large, continuous deposit with a conceptual strip ratio across the entire Mineral Resource Estimate of approximately 2.7:1. The updated Preliminary Economic Assessment contemplates a mine and concentrator operation located at Ashram, with production of an intermediate mixed rare earth concentrate product for downstream processing. The project development strategy incorporates on-site concentration, multi-modal logistics transportation, hydrometallurgical processing in Saguenay, production of saleable mixed rare earth products, and future optionality for additional downstream processing initiatives. The Ashram Project mine design and mine plan are based on a conventional open-pit, truck-and-shovel operation using drill-and-blast mining on 10m benches, operated by an owner fleet on a continuous 7-day, 12-hour shift basis. While the Mineral Resource supports a theoretical 169-year mine life at 4,900tpd, a 30-year life-of-mine was adopted for the Preliminary Economic Assessment as it captures most of the Project’s value. Based on technical and economic parameters and metal selling prices, the Net Metal Return cut-off for the Project was calculated at CAD 88/tonne. A trade-off study assessing the impact of higher cut-off values on Project economics and concentrator feed quality resulted in the selection of an elevated cut-off strategy being adopted and a Net Metal Return cut-off of CAD 217/tonne was ultimately selected for the Preliminary Economic Assessment. The resulting open pit design for the 30-year mine life includes 53 million tonnes of mill feed at a strip ratio of 0.4:1. Of the approximately 53 million tonnes of mill feed underpinning the 30-year production target, approximately 93% is sourced from Indicated Mineral Resources and approximately 7% is sourced from Inferred Mineral Resources. The mine plan has been sequenced such that Indicated Mineral Resources predominate in the early years of production, with Inferred Mineral Resources weighted towards the later stages of the mine life.