As it announced late last month, Great Western completed the first phase of its exploration program at the 474-hectare, former-producing Steenkampskraal rare earth property in South Africa.

The drill program had two primary goals: to provide information in support of a fully compliant NI 43-101 resource estimate report for the area, and to collect a representative mini-bulk sample for metallurgical testing.

The program consisted of 39 diamond drill holes totaling 3,780 metres, including 17 holes for resource delineation, totaling 1,932 metres, and 22 holes dedicated to metallurgical sampling, 1,848 metres. Assay results are pending and will be reported as they are received from the laboratories, the company said.

The company has also launched a 3,000-metre exploration program that will include on-strike and down-dip drill holes at the Steenkampskraal project, in order to test the extension of the mineralized vein system.

The drilling has started, and is currently targeting the strike extension of the vein mineralization that is located immediately west of the current mine site.

Great Western also announced that the first 125 metres of the decline at the Steenkampskraal mine has been refurbished, with 50 metres remaining to be completed.

Modern, high-volume underground ventilation continues to be improved with the installation of two new fans at the base of the underground workings, Great Western added. The ventilation distribution system is designed to substantially mitigate radon measurements in the working areas.

The Steenkampskraal mine now contains a full complement of ancillary buildings, including management offices, change houses, laundry service, mine workshops, and storage facilities.

Potable and mine recirculation water systems are also now in place. The reverse osmosis plant has been successfully installed with a capacity of 18,000 litres per hour. This capacity is important to management's priority of continuous re-use of the available water resource, thereby minimizing overall water use at site, it said.

In other news, Great Western and Ganzhou Qiandong Rare Earth Group of China established an incorporated JV last month, called Great Western GQD Rare Earth Materials Co Ltd, for the design, construction, and operation of a rare earth separation plant, which will be located in the Steenkampskraal region.

In addition to its Steenkampskraal rare earth property in South Africa, Great Western also owns four rare earth exploration projects throughout North America, and two rare earth processing plants through its subsidiaries Less Common Metals in Birkenhead, U.K., and Great Western Technologies in Troy, Michigan, where it makes rare earth element-based specialty alloys.

Last month, Great Western's joint venture (JV) partner in the Red Wine exploration project, Search Minerals, said its phase three drilling program had extended the rare earth element mineralization to 400 metres depth at the project.

Meanwhile, earlier in January, Search announced the discovery of high-grade rare earth element mineralization in the Merlot prospect at the Red Wine property in Labrador.

Less Common Metals (LCM) also announced in January that it received a significant capacity boost. LCM added a new furnace at Hooton Park, near its existing facilities, raising capacity by about 50 percent. LCM said it plans to add new furnaces in response to the increasing demand from its growing global customer base.

Great Western Mineral Group (CVE:GWG) announced Thursday that president and CEO, Jim Engdahl, is scheduled to appear on the Business News Network (BNN) show, Commodities, on Thursday, December 28, at 11:30 am EDT.

Engdahl will discuss the impact of the rare earth export quotas recently announced by the Government of China, and will offer a corporate update on Great Western.

The Saskatoon, Saskatchewan-based company is continuing the development of its Steenkampskraal mine, a past-producing rare earth mine and processing facility in South Africa. Great Western recently completed 2,307 metres of drilling on the property, intended for geological resource delineation, it said.

An NI 43-101 compliant resource estimate for Steenkampskraal is expected for the first half of 2012, with the processing facility to begin full operations on both the mining and processing side by the first quarter of 2013.

Demand for rare earths is booming, as despite being used in relatively small amounts, the metals are necessary to the growing production of energy-efficient green products, mobile electronics and electric vehicles.

Deposits of the metals are not actually rare, but high capital costs, difficult metallurgy, marginal ‘heavy’ rare earths grades, and a lack of people with significant rare earths processing experience are major hurdles to bringing new mines to production, bringing Great Western's advanced Steenkampskraal mine to investors' attention.

China currently produces around 97 percent of global rare earths, but in July of last year, the country announced significant reductions to rare earths export quotas, claiming protection of a strategic and dwindling resource. Since 2006, rare earths prices have increased between 1,000 percent and 10,000 percent.

On the TSX-Venture Exchange, Great Western shares rose 5.06 percent to $0.415, as of 11:56 am EDT.

Investors cheered the news with Great Western stock up 3.6 percent to 57 cents Wednesday afternoon.
For the quarter that ended September 30, Great Western posted revenue of $4.2 million compared to $3.4 million a year earlier.

Great Western highlighted the fact that processing operations at its Less Common Minerals unit in the UK and Great Western Technologies in the US achieved earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) of $728,629 for the third quarter, compared to an EBITDA loss of $50,852 a year earlier.

Less Common Metals and Great Western Technologies produce a variety of specialty alloys for use in the battery, magnet and aerospace industries. These “designer” alloys include those containing copper, nickel, cobalt and the rare earth elements.

Great Western’s president and chief executive officer, Jim Engdahl, said: “Great Western Minerals Group experienced continued growth in revenue and margin performance on both a third quarter’ and year-to-date basis.”

“With this type of positive financial performance from our alloy processing plants, combined with a stronger cash position than was the case at the same point last year, the company is well positioned to move ahead in its development of the company’s number one priority – the Steenkampskraal project.

“This type of revenue and margin performance is indicative of the capability of our team to execute our company’s business plan very effectively.”

Net loss for the third quarter, including stock-based compensation of $2.0 million, was $3.8 million, or $0.01 per share, compared to a loss of $1.1 million, or $.0004 a share, a year earlier.

Great Western completed the quarter with a consolidated cash balance of $5.3 million, compared to $1.9 million in 2010.

In the first nine months of the year, manufacturing and processing revenues from Less Common Metals and Great Western Technologies represented a 28 percent increase over the first nine months of 2010.

Gross margins on manufacturing and processing operations for the first nine months of 2011 represent an increase of 47 percent over the same year-to-date period of 2010.

The company, which plans to become a fully-integrated rare earth producer, has six rare earth exploration and development properties in North America and holds the Steenkampskraal mine in South Africa through its subsidiary Rare Earth Extraction Co.

On Tuesday, Great Western announced that it has completed 26 coreholes, totaling 2,307 metres on its Steenkampskraal rare earth mine.

The 26 coreholes are comprised of 19 holes dedicated to metallurgical mini-bulk sampling, with the remaining seven holes intended for geological resource delineation. Great Western said the 19 holes intersected mineralization ranging from a few centimetres in length to 3.55 metres.

The refurbishment of the Steenkampskraal mine shaft and ancillary facilities continues on schedule, toward an expected completion in December 2011.

The company is still in talks to form a joint venture (JV) with China-based Ganzhou Qiandong Rare Earth Group, in order to build a rare earths separation plant in South Africa, to be located near the former-producing Steenkampskraal mine.

Demand for rare earths is booming, and despite being used in relatively small amounts, the metals are necessary to the growing production of energy-efficient green products, mobile electronics and electric vehicles.

Deposits of the metals are not actually rare, but high capital costs, difficult metallurgy, marginal ‘heavy’ rare earths grades, and a lack of people with significant rare earths processing experience are major hurdles to bringing new mines to production, bringing Great Western’s advanced Steenkampskraal mine to investors’ attention.

The 26 coreholes are comprised of 19 holes dedicated to metallurgical mini-bulk sampling, with the remaining seven holes intended for geological resource delineation, the company said.

Great Western said the 19 holes intersected mineralization ranging from a few centimetres in length to 3.55 metres.

Additionally, a representative selection of the seven resource definition coreholes have been identified and sampled for ongoing mineralogical and textural studies.

"Our drilling and sampling program will continue to mid-December 2011," said president and CEO, Jim Engdahl.

"This moves us toward completion of two goals at Steenkampskraal - first, to provide information in support of a fully compliant National Instrument 43-101 resource estimate report and second, to expand the resources at Steenkampskraal through testing the down-dip extension of the main structure as well as investigation of the encasing host rock mineralization."

With regards to the second objective of the drill program, the company said that around 185 kilograms out of a proposed 600 kilograms of underground monazite sample has been collected by underground channel sampling, which will be submitted for studies once completed.

Through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Rare Earth Extraction Co., Great Western holds a controlling interest in the Steenkampskraal rare earth mine in South Africa.

The company also owns two rare earth processing plants through its subsidiaries Less Common Metals in Birkenhead, U.K., and Great Western Technologies in Troy, Michigan, where it makes rare earth element-based specialty alloys.

In addition to its Steenkampskraal property, Great Western also owns four rare earth exploration projects throughout North America.

Demand for rare earths is booming, and despite being used in relatively small amounts, the metals are necessary to the growing production of energy-efficient green products, mobile electronics and electric vehicles.

Deposits of the metals are not actually rare, but high capital costs, difficult metallurgy, marginal ‘heavy’ rare earths grades, and a lack of people with significant rare earths processing experience are major hurdles to bringing new mines to production, bringing Great Western's advanced Steenkampskraal mine to investors' attention.

China currently produces around 97 percent of global rare earths, but in July of last year, the country announced significant reductions to rare earths export quotas, claiming protection of a strategic and dwindling resource. Since 2006, rare earths prices have increased between 1,000 and 10,000 percent.

On the TSX-Venture Exchange, Great Western's stock has gained 42.86 percent over the last year.

Through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Rare Earth Extraction, Great Western holds a controlling interest in the Steenkampskraal rare earth mine in South Africa. The company also owns two rare earth processing plants through its subsidiaries Less Common Metals in Birkenhead, U.K., and Great Western Technologies in Troy, Michigan, where it makes rare earth element-based specialty alloys.

In addition to its Steenkampskraal property, GWMG also owns four rare earth exploration projects throughout North America.

The company said it is still in talks to form a joint venture (JV) with China-based Ganzhou Qiandong Rare Earth Group, in order to build a rare earths separation plant in South Africa, to be located near the former-producing Steenkampskraal mine.

GWMG said the discussions are progressing, and several issues have been settled, including the JV's corporate structure, ownership, and compensation issues. The companies are currently working on a detailed plant design that ensures its customers' requirements will be met, it said.

The refurbishment of the Steenkampskraal mine shaft and ancillary facilities continues on schedule, GWMG said, toward an expected completion in December 2011.

The company has retained East Rand Engineering Services to refurbish the mine access decline, to construct a head gear and winding house, and to install underground infrastructures, like ventilation fans and underground stores.

Demand for rare earths is booming, as despite being used in relatively small amounts, the metals are necessary to the growing production of energy-efficient green products, mobile electronics and electric vehicles.

Deposits of the metals are not actually rare, but high capital costs, difficult metallurgy, marginal ‘heavy’ rare earths grades, and a lack of people with significant rare earths processing experience are major hurdles to bringing new mines to production, bringing GWMG's advanced Steenkampskraal mine to investors' attention.

China currently produces around 97% of global rare earths, but in July of last year, the country announced significant reductions to rare earths export quotas, claiming protection of a strategic and dwindling resource. Since 2006, rare earths prices have increased between 1,000 and 10,000 percent.

A syndicate of agents  led by Byron Capital Markets and Cormark Securities sold 27.2 million units for 63 cents each. 
Gross proceeds of $17.2 million reflects the full $15 million financing plus $2.16 million tied to the over-allotment option granted to the syndicate, the company said.

Proceeds are intended for the continued development of its Steenkampskraal project in South Africa as well as for general corporate purposes, the junior miner said.

“Successfully closing this financing moves our company one more step forward in its goal of being a fully integrated rare earth producer,” chief executive Jim Engdahl said in a statement.

“As we have noted, having adequate capital on hand puts the company in a much stronger position as we continue to evaluate non-dilutive financing mechanisms such as joint venture off-take agreements and debt instruments for our company’s continued development.”

Great Western produces rare earth specialty alloys that are used in the battery, magnet and aerospace industries, and are produced by its two subsidiaries: Less Common Metals in Birkenhead, U.K., and Great Western Technologies in Troy, Michigan.

Aside from its Steenkampskraal mine in South Africa, the Saskatoon, Saskatchewan-based company also holds interests in six rare earth exploration properties in North America.

In his new role, Kennedy is responsible for the development, commissioning and operation of Great Western’s Steenkampskraal rare earth mine, in South Africa.

Kennedy, a co-founder of Less Common Metals, which was later acquired by Great Western Minerals, has served as Great Western's managing director of metals and alloys since 2008.

In addition, he is a chartered engineer and is a member of the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining.

Great Western also announced today that it has appointed Ian Higgins to the position of managing director of metals and alloys, replacing Kennedy, with overall responsibility for Less Common Metals and Great Western Technologies, the company's two processing subsidiaries.

Higgins joined Less Common Metals in 2001 and has been responsible for the day-to-day operations of Less Common Metals as well as procurement of rare earth materials from China.

Finally, the company also announced on Thursday the appointment of David Murphy as commercial director of Less Common Metals.

Murphy brings 30 plus years of experience in the rare earths sector with Less Common Metals, and previously with Johnson Matthey Rare Earth Products where he was general manager.

All appointments are effective immediately, the company said in a statement.

"These appointments significantly strengthen our management team and our corporate structure," Great Western’s chief executive, Jim Engdahl, said.

"The appointment of David Kennedy as CEO of Rareco means that our South African operations will be guided by one of the most highly experienced people in the global rare earth industry.

"His background will serve Rareco exceptionally well as he focuses on the Steenkampskraal operation as a future supply source for our alloy processing operations."

Great Western's rare earth specialty alloys are used in the battery, magnet and aerospace industries, and are produced by its two subsidiaries: Less Common Metals in Birkenhead, UK, and Great Western Technologies in Troy, Michigan.

Aside from its Steenkampskraal mine in South Africa, the Saskatoon, Saskatchewan-based company also holds interests in six rare earth exploration properties in North America.

The company has hired a syndicate of agents for the offering, co-led by Byron Capital Markets and Cormark Securities.

The pricing of the offered shares will be determined by the company and agents in the context of the market, Great Western said.

Proceeds will be used for the continued development of the company's Steenkampskraal rare earth project in South Africa, as well as for general corporate purposes.

President and CEO, Jim Engdahl, said: "This financing will move GWMG one more important step toward its goal of being a fully integrated rare earth producer. We have carefully considered the various financing options available and feel an equity financing will provide the company with the greatest flexibility in the short term.

"Ensuring we have adequate capital on hand puts our company in a much stronger position as we continue to evaluate non-dilutive financing mechanisms such as joint ventures/off-take agreements and debt instruments."

The company also said it has deferred its planned special meeting of shareholders originally scheduled for November 22. Great Western said it had been contemplating a re-confirmation of shareholder approval for undertaking a share consolidation, initially approved by shareholders in August, but because of the current state of global financial markets, the company has decided that such a plan would not be in the best interests of stakeholders.

Engdahl commented: "Our company evaluated this strategic decision very carefully. A share consolidation can be a catalyst that enables GMWG to fully access a broader capital markets strategy, and on that basis, could be of benefit to shareholders. The current financial market conditions, however, intervened and the company's assessment was that shareholders' interests would not be served by proceeding at this point."

In September, Great Western said an NI 43-101 compliant report from Steenkampskraal is due in the first half of next year, with the facility to begin full operations on both the mining and processing side by the first quarter of 2013. Anticipated total capital costs for the Steenkampskraal facility amount to $60 million.

Demand for rare earths is boooming, as despite being used in relatively small amounts, the metals are necessary to the growing production of energy-efficient green products, mobile electronics and electric vehicles.

Deposits of the metals are not actually rare, but high capital costs, difficult metallurgy, marginal ‘heavy’ rare earths grades, and a lack of people with significant rare earths processing experience are major hurdles to bringing new mines to production, bringing Great Western's advanced Steenkampskraal mine to investors' attenion.

Engdahl said his company's "number one priority" was developing the resource base at Steenkampskraal, a past-producing rare earth mine and processing facility in South Africa, where a refurbishement process is now underway.

The company said an NI 43-101 compliant report from the Steenkampskraal is due in the first half of next year, with the facility to begin full operations on both the mining and processing side by the first quarter of 2013. Anticipated total capital costs for the Steenkampskraal facility amount to $60 million.

Minerals present at the Steenkampskraal ore body include monazite, a phosphate source of rare earths, quartz, apatite and magnetite, with small amounts of zircon, pyrite, chalcopyrite, galena and ilmenite.

Demand for rare earths is boooming, as despite being used in relatively small amounts, the metals are necessary to the growing production of energy-efficient green products, mobile electronics and electric vehicles.

Deposits of the metals are not actually rare, but high capital costs, difficult metallurgy, marginal ‘heavy’ rare earths grades, and a lack of people with significant rare earths processing experience are major hurdles to bringing new mines to production, bringing Great Western's advanced Steenkampskraal mine to investors' attenion.

China currently produces around 97% of global rare earths, but in July of last year, the country announced significant reductions to rare earths export quotas, claiming protection of a strategic and dwindling resource. Since 2006, rare earths prices have increased between 1,000-10,000%.

The first phase of construction of a chloride processing plant at Steenkampskraal is due to be completed by the end of December. When it is at full capacity, based on production of 5,000 tonnes of rare earth oxides per year at low cash costs, the company expects to generate well in excess of $250 million in cash flow.

Engdahl downplayed the risks of nationalization in South Africa, a cause for concern for a number of foreign companies operating in the country, stating that the issue was "part of the normal political discourse" in the nation.

At the company's UK rare earth alloys processing subsidiary, Less Common Metals, which produces its specialty alloys that are used in the battery, magnet and aerospace industries, a new furnace will be commissioned in December and ready for production in early 2012, upping capacity to 2,000 tonnes per annum in the next 12 months.

The company is also working on additional supply agreements to achieve guaranteed long term sales. Great Western has been successful in this area thus far, with second quarter manufacturing and processing revenues jumping 63% to $5.18 million.

Engdahl said that the Hoidas Lake project in Saskatchewan was still promising and the company will issue an update on the project in the first quarter of next year.

On the issue of listing on AMEX to improve the company's exposure to the US market, Engdahl said there were no imminent plans for an additional listing: "We consider it every month and when the opportunity is there and the timing is there, we will seriously look at that."

The company had cash resources of around $1.5 million as at September 13, and in terms of spending timelines, most of the capital requirements have been deployed for the current and next month. Engdahl anticipates a number of the company's 23 million outstanding warrants coming in "fairly shortly" and also expects to see money come in from its current offtake agreements.

The company continues to look for early stage rare earth-related opportunities with great infrastructure, Engdahl concluded. As at 1.40 pm EDT, shares were up 6.67% at 80 cents.

The initial aim of the program, which will be fully underway by September 14, is to provide geological information, metallurgical characterization and test data in support of a fully compliant National Instrument 43-101 resource estimate of stockpiled ore at surface, as well as underground in-situ material.

Following the first objective, its second goal is to expand the resources at Steenkamskraal through testing the down-dip extension of the main structure and to investigate the encasing host rock mineralization.

Great Western said South African-based Drillcorp is a highly experienced drilling team that has been in business since 1988.

With 45 rigs operating across South Africa, Drillcorp provides diamond core drilling to depths of 3,000 metres coupled with reverse circulation, underground, and percussion drilling services.

Great Western’s Chief Executive, Jim Engdahl, said: "This is another pivotal moment in the progress of the company at Steenkampskraal with the launch of an exploration program at site designed to confirm previous data and produce an NI 43-101 resource estimate."

The Steenkampskraal rare earth mine rests about 70 kilometres north of the town of Vanrhynsdorp, in the Western Cape Province of South Africa, roughly 350 kilometres north and west of Cape Town.

A refurbishment project for the property is also well underway, and is progressing towards the year-end 2011 completion date, as scheduled, the company said late last month.

Great Western's rare earth specialty alloys are used in the battery, magnet and aerospace industries, and are produced at its subsidiaries, Less Common Metals in Birkenhead, U.K., and Great Western Technologies in Troy, Michigan. These alloys contain aluminium, nickel, cobalt and rare earth elements.

Aside from Steenkampskraal, the company also holds interests in six rare earth exploration properties in North America.
The Saskatoon-based company’s shares were trading at 75 cents Thursday afternoon on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

The company previously announced it hired East Rand Engineering Services to refurbish the mine decline, to construct the head gear and winding house, and to install the underground infrastructure, including ventilation fans and underground stores.

"We are very pleased with the progress being made on the refurbishment project and with the work of East Rand Engineering Service," said president and CEO, Jim Engdahl.

"Under the direction of Steenkampskraal Project Director Vincent Mora, we remain right on track to complete this component of the Steenkampskraal project prior to the end of 2011, as scheduled."

Indeed, fabrication work has been completed at the two shop sites that Great Western chose in early June, while permanent winder controls are at the 95% completion stage, and remain on schedule for a September 7 completion, it said.

In addition, decline refurbishment is underway, with the first 45 metres of the decline having been cast in concrete.

The Steenkampskraal rare earth mine is located about 70 kilometres north of the town of Vanrhynsdorp, in the Western Cape Province of South Africa, roughly 350 kilometres north and west of Cape Town.

Great Western's rare earth specialty alloys are used in the battery, magnet and aerospace industries, and are produced at its subsidiaries, Less Common Metals in Birkenhead, U.K., and Great Western Technologies in Troy, Michigan. These alloys contain aluminium, nickel, cobalt and rare earth elements.

Great Western's stock on the TSX-Venture Exchange rose 1.33% as of 9:58 am EDT on Monday, to trade at $0.76 per share.

Under his new role, Jellicoe will primarily manage Great Western’s exploration program at the Steenkampskraal rare earth project situated in South Africa. In addition, he has been assigned to locate and evaluate new rare earth projects on a global basis.

Jellicoe, who brings 19 years worth of experience, has worked for companies like Takara Resources (CVE: TKK), Mammoth Minerals and Great Western Diamonds, among others. His background includes exploration in the gold, diamond, uranium and industrial metals sectors.

Jellicoe is also a member of many organizations like the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Saskatchewan.

"The addition of Brent Jellicoe enables us to continue to execute our Steenkampskraal exploration project on schedule and bring our historical Steenkampskraal data into National Instrument 43-101 compliance as quickly as possible,” CEO Jim Engdahl said in a statement.

"He will also assess opportunities for additional long term rare earth feedstock supply to satisfy the growing demand for our alloys."

Great Western Minerals is an integrated rare earths processor. Its specialty alloys are used in the battery, magnet and aerospace industries.

In addition to its stake in Steenkampskraal, which Great Western holds via its 100% interest in Rare Earth Extraction Co., the company also holds stakes in six rare earth exploration and development properties in North America.

The Saskatoon-based company’s shares went up 40 cents to $0.750 Thursday afternoon in Toronto.

Selby will advise on the processing of extra monazite streams to be used as feedstock in Great Western's rare earth processing and separation facilities in and around Steekampskraal.

Selby most recently worked with Bay Minerals of South Africa, where he served as general manager of the minerals processing operation. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in industrial chemistry from the University of Bath, in England, as well as in Geology from the University of Witwatersrand in South Africa.

"The experience and expertise of John Selby ensures our continued and thorough compliance with the terms of the National Nuclear Regulator of South Africa in conjunction with a focus on increasing the amount of monazite feedstock for our rare earth processing operations,” CEO Jim Engdahl said.

"His highly recognized advocacy work and expertise in the areas of radiation, waste management and environmental stewardship will ensure Great Western continues its development work at the highest level of international standards."

Great Western Minerals Group is an integrated rare earths processor. Its specialty alloys are used in the battery, magnet and aerospace industries.

In addition to its stake in Steenkampskraal, which Great Western holds via its 100% interest in Rare Earth Extraction Co., the company also holds stakes in six rare earth exploration and development properties in North America.

Saskatoon-based Great Western’s shares shot up 40 cents to $0.730 Tuesday in recent trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

"Awarding the contract for the detailed design of the processing plant is yet another significant step forward in the execution of our plan to become a fully integrated rare earth producer by early 2013," said Great Western Chief Executive Jim Engdahl in a statement.

 The processing plant, expected to complete by the end of the year, will be built at the Steenkampskraal mine site. 

The company, which has exploration and development properties in North America, said this is the first step in the production process where rare earth ore is converted into rare earth chlorides. 

DRA, which has constructed plants on five continents, is a multi-national organization specializing in the mining, infrastructure and mineral processing industries. 

"Contracting DRA, with its strong track record of superior performance, ensures we can achieve world class design and construction standards within the processing plant, combined with cutting edge technology," Engdahl added. 

The plant will "crack" the monazite ore through a caustic leaching process, removing copper and gold by flotation. Additionally, Tri-sodium phosphate will be produced as a by-product with the potential for onward sales. 

Further, the thorium found in the rare earth ore will be removed during the processing stage and be prepared for licensed storage, leaving a clean rare earth chloride ready for the solvent extraction separation phase. 

Earlier this week, Great Western announced a joint venture with Ganzhou Qiandong Rare Earth Group Ltd in relation to the processing plant. 

A new joint venture company, to be called Great Western GQD Rare Earth Materials Co., will be created. Of which Great Western will own 75%, while Chinese rare earths processor Ganzhou Qiandong will own the rest. The agreement will be formalised in August. 

Great Westerns shares were inactive during pre-market trade on Wednesday, but closed Tuesday at $0.980 on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

The transaction, which was accomplished through steady share purchases, began in September 2010, when Great Western completed a $3.0 million private placement to fund its acquisition of 20.8% of Rareco shares.

Since then, the integrated rare earths processor has been purchasing shares in tranches, buying 49.4% of shares in late January, and another 22.4% in early March. Each share was purchased for 3 South Africa Rands, or $0.43 USD.

At the end of May, Great Western held a 93.1% stake in the company, enabling it to initiate the compulsory acquisition provisions of South Africa's Companies Act.

"This final step in the acquisition of 100% of the shares of Rareco further positions [Great Western] to execute its fast track development strategy at the Steenkampskraal Rare Earth project," said Great Western president and CEO, Jim Engdahl.

The Steenkampskraal mine is located about 70 kilometres north of the town of Vanrhynsdorp, in the Western Cape Province of South Africa, roughly 350 kilometres north and west of Cape Town.

Great Western has already begun the  refurbishment of the previously-producing mine shaft at the project, due to be completed by mid-November.

In April, the company announced that it fast-tracked its development plans for Steenkampskraal, now targeting the start of underground mining operations in the first quarter of 2012.

The company has also nearly doubled the planned level of production at the site to approximately 5,000 tonnes of rare earth oxides (REO) per year, up from the 2,700 tonnes originally anticipated.

Great Western's specialty alloys are used for the battery, magnet and aerospace industries. The company also holds interests in seven rare earth exploration and development properties in North America.

Revenue for the first three months of the year grew to $4.24 million, compared to $3.89 million a year earlier. The results include manufacturing and processing revenue from two of the company's subsidiaries, UK-based Less Common Metals, and US-based Great Western Technologies.

Quarterly gross margins on manufacturing and processing operations rose over 3%.

However, net losses widened to $3.23 million, or $0.009 per share, versus $0.7 million, or $0.003 per share, a year earlier. The company said the latest quarter included stock-based compensation expenses of $1.7 million, versus nil, a year prior.

The company's UK-based Less Common Metals (LCM) subsidiary, where its specialty alloys are produced, generated revenue of $4.08 million, up from $3.60 million in the prior year period. Gross margins increased 20.0% compared to the first quarter of 2010, while earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization rose 30.8%.

"Great Western Minerals continues to see significant improvements in revenue and margin performance in our LCM alloy processing operations," said president and CEO Jim Engdahl.

"As well, our improved cash position relative to the same time last year is important given our company's aggressive development plans at Steenkampskraal and our expansion plans for Less Common Metals.

"The influx of cash from the exercise of outstanding warrants continues to put our company in a much stronger position than has been the case in the past."

Indeed, the company finished the quarter with $14.9 million in cash, which it plans to use to develop its Steenkampskraal rare earth mine in South Africa. In addition to a planned exploration program at Steenkampskraal, Great Western also holds interests in six rare earth exploration properties in North America.

The company's specialty alloys are used in the battery, magnet and aerospace industries, and are produced at its subsidiaries, Less Common Metalsin Birkenhead, U.K., and Great Western Technologies in Troy, Michigan. These alloys contain aluminium, nickel, cobalt and rare earth elements.

Under the terms of the option agreement, which was signed in late July 2010, Great Western is required to make cash and share payments to Search, and fund expenditures as part of a work commitment. The end of the option term was originally expected at the end of April 2012.

To date, Great Western has paid Search $125,000 in cash and 550,000 shares, and has contributed $1.45 million in expenditures for work commitment on the property. The Saskatoon, Saskatchewan-based company also funded a $50,000 metallurgical program on the site, fulfilling its work commitment obligations.

To complete the option and acquire its 50% interest, Great Western must issue an additional 500,000 shares to Search and make a final $100,000 cash payment. Upon the completion of this payment, the 50-50 joint venture will have been formed.

The Red Wine property is located about 100 kilometres north of Churchill Falls in Labrador and contains 301 claims on 7,525 hectares. Exploration in 2010 revealed total rare earth elements of 1.59% over 4.0 metres, with consistent heavy rare earth element enrichment in all samples of 35% or higher, among other positive results.

"The 2010 exploration program discovered a number of new Rare Earth showings with a high percentage of Heavy Rare Earth Elements," said Great Western president and CEO, Jim Engdahl.

"That, plus the encouraging drill results from the Cabernet drilling program, has encouraged GWMG to move ahead with the formation of the Joint Venture."

The Steenkampskraal mine is located about 70 kilometres north of the town of Vanrhynsdorp, in the Western Cape Province of South Africa, roughly 350 kilometres north and west of Cape Town.

In Zimba's new role as plant superintendent, he will be responsible for the development and operation of Great Western’s solvent extraction plant.  Zimba starts on June 27.

Having worked for companies like Nkana Smelter in Kitwe, and Konkola Copper Mines in Chingola, Zambia, he has background experience in flotation, electro wining and solvent extraction plants.

Meanwhile, Khoboko has been appointed as plant metallurgist for the project, and will focus on the operation of the rare earth processing plant at Steenkampskraal from run-of-mine crushing through to rare earth chloride production.

Khoboko, who will start his duties on July 4, has previously worked with companies such as Bateman Engineering and Lesotho Meteorological Services.

"The appointment of these qualified individuals to their respective positions with Great Western Minerals represents yet another concrete step in the development of our company's Steenkampskraal rare earth project,” said president Jim Engdahl.

Great Western's specialty alloys, which contain aluminium, nickel, cobalt and rare earth elements, are used in the battery, magnet and aerospace industries.

The company holds a majority stake in the entity that owns the Steenkampskraal rare earth mine in South Africa, and also holds interests in five rare earth exploration properties in North America. Its shares were up 20 cents, or 3.03% to trade at $0.680 on Wednesday as of 1:17 p.m. EST.

The work program on the project, which includes two claims known as Beatty River and Douglas River, included geological mapping, till, soil and geochemical surveys, as well as trenching and core drilling.

The rare earths processor said that during the work last year, geological mapping on Beatty revealed a new showing named Helipad. Like the original, historical showing, mineralization is concentrated in porous sandstone channels within the Athabasca Sandstone in a parallel, north-south structure, 50 metres to the west of the first Marline showing discovery.

Two trenches tested the new find, returning grades of up to 2.31% total rare earth oxides (TREO) over 1.0 metre in width and 3.0 metres in depth, of which 99% are the more valuable heavy rare earth oxides (HREO).

Three trenches also tested the extensions of the Marline Showing mineralization to the north and south, with rare earth element mineralization found in the trench five metres south of the original Marline trench. No mineralization was identified to the north, Great Western said.

The trench in which the mineralization was found had values of up to 1.14% TREO over 1.2 metres in width and 3.0 metres in depth, of which 96% were heavy rare earth elements.

However, the company said that core drilling of 14 holes, for 1,006 metres, which tested the Marline and Helipad showings, failed to encounter any significant rare earth mineralization.

"While we were generally pleased with the trenching results, which showed significant concentrations of heavy Rare Earths locally, we were disappointed that the drilling did not pick up similar results to the trenching”, said president Jim Engdahl.

“However, we remain encouraged that, with a focused exploration effort, the potential exists to establish a resource from multiple occurrences of heavy Rare Earth enriched mineralization."

Indeed, the company said that biogeochemical surveys in 2010 identified eight areas anomalous in rare earth elements, while soil surveys found seven.

This year, Great Western plans to carry out geological mapping, prospecting and geochemical surveys over the northern two thirds of the Beatty Claim, and will detail the anomalies identified in the 2010 program.

In a program in 2009 by Great Western, sampling of historic Beatty River trench results, which returned high heavy rare earth oxide mineralization, were confirmed.

Great Western's specialty alloys, which contain aluminium, nickel, cobalt and rare earth elements, are used in the battery, magnet and aerospace industries. The company holds a majority stake in the entity that owns the Steenkampskraal rare earth mine in South Africa, and also holds interests in five rare earth exploration properties in North America.

Work will include the refurbishment of the mine access decline, the construction of winding gear, the installation of dewatering pumps, as well as all infrastructure services will be installed throughout the underground mine area.

"Awarding this contract marks a significant watershed for the company as it commences its program to deliver Rare Earth production at Steenkampskraal by the end of 2012," said president and CEO Jim Engdahl.

"Vincent Mora, the Steenkampskraal Project Director, has been tireless in assembling a first rate development, mining and processing team in South Africa, moving rapidly forward."

To date, Great Western holds 93.1% of Rare Earth Extraction Co.(Rareco), having progressively increased its holding in the company, which owns the Steenkampskraal rare earth mine in South Africa, since last year. Great Western has now initiated the process to acquire 100% of Rareco.

In April, the company announced that it fast-tracked its development plans for Steenkampskraal, now targeting the start of underground mining operations in the first quarter of 2012.

The company has also nearly doubled the planned level of production at the site to approximately 5,000 tonnes of rare earth oxides (REO) per year, up from the 2,700 tonnes originally anticipated. Great Western also recently received approval from the National Nuclear Regulator of South Africa for its work program at Steenkampskraal.

The company's specialty rare earth alloys are used in the battery, magnet and aerospace industries. Great Western also holds interests in seven rare earth exploration and development properties in North America.

President and CEO Jim Engdahl urged members of Congress to work together on a bipartisan solution to the "rare earths and critical minerals crisis" in the US, and to incorporate provisions from both bills under consideration.

Rare earths are metals used in a number of green technologies, from wind turbines to hybrid car batteries and mobile phones.

China is the world's largest supplier of the strategic minerals, producing over 97%, and with the country continually cutting export quotas, rare earths are becoming short in supply.

The two pieces of legislation Great Western consulted on are entitled the "National Strategic and Critical Minerals Policy Act of 2011", and the "Resource Assessment of Rare Earths Act of 2011".

"These bills offer important elements of a much-needed comprehensive solution to challenges in developing a complete, reliable and competitive rare earth supply-chain in the United States," Engdahl said.

Indeed, Engdahl specifically cited ideas within the pending legislation, includng a supply-chain analysis to inform the market of potential shortages, the creation of a small inventory of those rare earths in short supply, and the development of downstream capabilities to produce metal.

Engdahl also advocated for industry and government officials to reform the current framework for issuing permits to develop rare earth mines, which are increasingly difficult to bring into production.

"Great Western does not support shortcuts that skirt important environmental protections," he added.

"Rather, we are encouraging a streamlining of the permitting process by the identification of unnecessary bureaucracy and inefficiency in the process."

Currently, the permitting process for a rare earth mine can take up to a decade from application submission to permit approval.

Great Western processes rare earth-based alloys, which are used in the battery, magnet and aerospace industries. The company also owns rare earth properties in South Africa and North America.

The hearing with CEO Engdahl can be viewed at http://naturalresources.house.gov/Calenda/EventSingle.aspx?EventID=243433.