LYC; looking forward, page-60

Clarity from Malaysia on rare waste The australian 8Apr

Wesfarmers has welcomed “additional clarity” from Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad on the contentious issue of waste storage from its takeover target Lynas.

Rare earths ore from Lynas’s Mount Weld mine in Western Australia is shipped to Malaysia for processing. The first stage produces waste materials including one with a low level of radioactivity, while the second stage further refines the rare earths concentrate into saleable goods. Dr Mahathir had flagged on Friday that Lynas would be able to continue its operations in Malaysia if it agreed to ensure that raw material was decontaminated before being sent to Malaysia.

That move appeared to match plans believed to be put forward by conglomerate Wesfarmers, which earlier this month revealed it had approached Lynas with a $1.5 billion takeover. Dr Mahathir also said that “other parties” had promised to stick to the condition. Wesfarmers is reportedly pushing to bring the first stage of processing to Australia, where the contentious waste being produced would also be stored. Only the concentrated material would be sent to Malaysia for the final stage of processing.’