Shares of Rainbow Rare Earths Ltd (LSE:RBW, OTC:RBWRF) surged 5% on Tuesday after the company launched a pilot operation using material from stockpiles at its South African operation.
In an interview, CEO George Bennett affirmed Rainbow's status as a "fully de-risked company", poised to churn out its first mixed rare earth sulphate by the third quarter.
The plant, backed by Mintek's Johannesburg facilities, will process material from historic gypsum stacks at Phalaborwa into a high-value mix of elements such as neodymium, praseodymium, dysprosium, and terbium.
The stock ended the session ahead by 0.43p at 8.93p.