St George Mining Ltd (ASX:SGQ, FRA:S0G) has extended its strategic alliance with US-based REalloys over the high-grade rare earths resource at the company’s 100%-owned Araxá Project in Minas Gerais, Brazil.
Araxá’s resource of 40.6Mt at 4.13% total rare earth oxides (TREO) is the largest and highest-grade carbonatite-hosted rare earth deposit in South America and the second-highest grade in the Western world.
Under the arrangement, REalloys will continue metallurgical test work on rare earth oxalate samples produced from Araxá using its proprietary technology for splitting and recovery of individual rare earth elements.
The test work is expected to help optimise a processing flowsheet for rare earths products at Araxá, with a focus on producing material suited to REalloys’ magnet-making operations.
The Memorandum of Understanding, signed on September 9, 2025, originally envisaged the parties entering a definitive offtake agreement within 120 days. That period has now been extended to one year to allow additional metallurgical test work and flowsheet development.
The strategic alliance is aimed at commercialising rare earths from Araxá and potentially securing REalloys a long-term offtake contract for up to 40% of production from the project.
REalloys describes itself as having a vertically integrated mine-to-magnet supply chain and has supplied magnet materials to US Government organisations including the Defense Logistics Agency and the US Department of Energy’s AMES National Laboratory, as well as industrial customers in defence, aerospace and electronics.
“The US government continues to push for greater security in rare earths supply chains, and REalloys is at the forefront of delivering a fully integrated mine-to-magnet solution that is focused on North American supply chain independence,” John Prineas, St George Mining’s executive chairman, said.
“We are excited to be continuing our collaboration with an industry leader like REalloys — an alliance that has potential to provide an attractive pathway for St George to access the rapidly developing and lucrative downstream sector of the US rare earths industry.
“The Araxá Project boasts a world-class, hard-rock rare earths resource with scale that makes it well-positioned to be a potential supplier of rare earths product for ex-China supply chains being established in Brazil, the US and other countries.
“Araxá is a hard-rock rare earths resource — the same style of deposit as the two major rare earths mines outside of China, the Mt Weld mine of Lynas Corporation and MP Materials’ Mountain Pass. Araxá is already comparable to these deposits in terms of volume and grade, and our resource upgrade due later this quarter is poised to further propel Araxá up in world-class rankings.”
Mine to magnet
REalloys has built a vertically integrated “mine-to-magnet” rare earths platform aimed at supporting North American supply chain independence, with proprietary separation and metallisation capabilities supplying magnet materials to government-linked and commercial end-markets.
Recent moves include a collaboration with Japan’s JOGMEC focused on magnet supply and technology transfer, and a partnership with the Saskatchewan Research Council that includes an expansion of heavy rare earth refining capacity and long-term offtake for 80% of upgraded facility output. REalloys has also appointed GM Defense president Stephen S. duMont as non-executive chair and is pursuing a NASDAQ listing via a business combination with Blackboxstocks.
For St George, any offtake outcome remains conditional on negotiating a formal agreement, with the current MOU non-exclusive and non-binding.
In the background, the US is continuing to push for more secure critical minerals supply chains, including a January 14, 2026, proclamation on processed critical minerals and a January 12, 2026, Treasury-led ministerial focused on diversifying supply chains, while St George continues engagement with US representatives and monitors reported US–Brazil critical minerals talks.
Rare earth oxalate production underpins Araxá development pathway
A rare earth oxalate product has already been successfully produced from Araxá mineralisation, following pilot plant work completed in 2012–13 prior to the company acquiring the project.
The pilot plant used in that work is now owned by St George and is set to be incorporated into a new pilot facility at the company’s planned Technology Centre, being developed in collaboration with Brazil’s CEFET technical university.
The earlier production of a high-quality rare earth product supports confidence in the future commercialisation of the high-grade Araxá resource.
Oxalate samples retained from the original pilot work have been delivered to REalloys for further metallurgical test work. Two batches of around 5 kilograms each show critical magnet rare earths neodymium and praseodymium (NdPr) account for more than 20% of total rare earth oxides, while heavy rare earths contribute around 5%, including elevated samarium and dysprosium levels used in magnet production.
Rare Earth Oxalate Products from 2012/13 Pilot Plant.
St George acquired 100% of the Araxá Project in February 2025. The project is located in Minas Gerais, Brazil, adjacent to CBMM’s niobium operations, within a region with established infrastructure, skilled labour and a long history of niobium production.
In April 2025, the company announced a maiden mineral resource estimate outlining a globally significant rare earths and niobium resource. St George has since secured government support for expedited approvals, built an in-country development team and established partnerships with Brazilian authorities.
The company has also been selected to participate in Brazil’s federal MagBras Initiative, which aims to establish an end-to-end domestic rare earths and permanent magnet supply chain, and has signed a cooperation agreement with the State of Minas Gerais to help fast-track permitting for the Araxá Project.