My understanding is the C&L plant was built because Malaysian regulatory body prohibited the import of 'thorium bearing' ore. So C&L in KAL was built to address this concern.
There would be no need to run C&L in MAL now. It becomes redundant (albeit due to flip-flopping regulatory policy of host country) Lynas didn't make it for fun.
Unless you are thinking they will continue to import 'unconcentrated ore' as feedstock for MAL C&L plant and also 'concentrated ore' from KAL C&L plant in parallel? I wouldn't think so? Unless that is allowed following various reviews. I thought it was built to supply to possible destinations. If it was just Malaysia LAMP, then yeah that becomes a shipping volume cost vs power and labour cost optimisation decision. However there are multiple paths being developed with the one in Texas.
It's an internal supply chain management optimisation issue, but there is also path diversity.
(I am freestyling here after almost a dozen beers on a glorious Perth Summer Saturday afternoon and using language & terms that suit me, before anyone jumps down my throat for using the wrong words. )
There is another interesting option where they keep it and accept feedstock/ore from another deposit too (but that's LT strategy speculation of my own). Let's just label that optionality as 'strategic ambiguity' for the timbering.
Cheers
LYC Price at posting:
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