Mel Sanderson, non-executive director of American Rare Earths Ltd (ASX:ARR, OTCQB:ARRNF), discussed the company's strategic decision to restructure operations to advance the Halleck Creek resource by establishing Wyoming Rare Inc. (WRI) as a wholly owned subsidiary to develop the project.
These changes aim to position Halleck Creek as a key strategic resource for US markets, making it more appealing to major investors and maximizing value for existing shareholders.
Sanderson emphasized the recent energy fund grant awarded by the State of Wyoming, which, along with the pathway to permitting, positions WRI to expedite the development of one of the largest rare earth deposits in North America.
Proactive: What was behind the recent change in strategy regarding Halleck Creek?
Mel Sanderson: As you may recall, and I'm sure many others do as well, Halleck Creek is an incredible resource. It is not just vast in size, but as our continued drilling programs demonstrate, it contains very malleable materials that will yield well to conventional processing. Additionally, our grades are beginning to improve. So, all good news on that front.
This positive development prompted American Rare Earths to establish Halleck Creek as a separate subsidiary, still wholly owned by ARR. WRI will be the operating entity in the United States, with the objective of bringing the Cowboy State mine into production as quickly as possible. To achieve this, we have been partnering with the state of Wyoming, working with cooperative partners ranging from the University of Wyoming to the governor's office and the Energy Department.
As you know, we recently received a $7 million grant from the state of Wyoming, which will certainly facilitate much of our work leading up to the preliminary economic assessment that we hope to complete early next year. As you can tell, it's all exciting news, and I'm excited.
How does establishing this project as a standalone entity allow for its own budgets and operational methods, and how does it emphasize the importance of focusing on this specific project?
Absolutely. We're emphasizing that it's a Wyoming project with Wyoming leadership. We're fortunate to have Joe Evers as our president; he's the person responsible for securing the grants we've received. Joe is a Wyoming native, and I recently learned that he grew up in Casper, which is where many of our residents are also located in Wyoming.
We hope this move will open the door to more American investment. ARR will continue trading and holding our other properties, like La Paz. By establishing WRI as a separate entity to manage Halleck Creek, we aim to attract investor attention and make it easier for Americans to invest in a strategically important project for the US.
What were the positive findings from the scoping study, and how do they indicate that there is much more potential in Halleck Creek beyond the small portion that was analyzed?
Absolutely. We've only just begun to understand 25% of the entire area we can work with. That's why we decided to proceed with the Cowboy State Mine as quickly as possible. We have a fantastic opportunity on state land with an incredible partner eager to move forward and committed to developing mining in the state to replace potential losses in coal mining over the next decade.
At the same time, we're continuing to conduct drilling and exploration to understand the rest of our concession and plan for future growth.
Quotes have been lightly edited for style and clarity