SNN caught up with TRER Chairman Anthony Marchese at the LD Micro conference in Los Angeles last week, where he went over the finer points of Round Top and the state of the project.
The key takeaway was Anthony's explanation of the significance of the recent metallurgical tests completed by K-Tech.
While the production of a salable concentrate is an important milestone in the evolution of Round Top (essentially a validation of the PEA), Marchese seems equally excited about the prospect of producing separated rare earths oxides. The ability to sell individual products (and probably create custom blends) allows an operation to better react to the market and smooth out peaks and valleys in demand. All things being equal, the more detailed a separation that a metallurgical process can achieve economically, the better off the project is.
