The Peak Resources Ltd (ASX: PEK) share price has surged into the green today. The gains come after a key update to Peak's Ngualla rare earth project in Tanzania.
Let's walk through today's announcement.
What did Peak announce?
Following yesterday's trading halt, Peak announced it had received regulatory approval from the Tanzanian Cabinet for a special mining licence at Ngualla.
Investors seemed to have relished the news, sending the Peak Resources share price soaring. At the time of writing, Peak Resources shares are exchanging hands for 12.5 cents a piece, a 37.36% gain from the market open.
The company has been in talks with the Tanzanian government on the special mining licence for more than 18 months.
As such, this "transformational milestone" is the final stage of approval before planned construction in September 2022.
The company said the Ngualla site is "one of the largest, highest grade and low cost Neodymium and Presodymium (NdPr) rare earth projects in the world".
According to the release, China currently produces 90% of the world's NdPr Oxide. Peak are therefore confident Ngualla "will position Tanzania as one of the major rare earth suppliers outside of China".
The approval also follows Peak exercising its option for a 250-year lease over its Teesside Refinery site in the U.K. Peak's Teesside facility will be built out to process Ngualla's "high-grade rare earth concentrate".
Speaking on the approval, Peak managing director Bardin Davis stated:
This is a landmark moment for Peak and will position Ngualla among the most advanced rare earth development projects … Peak is ideally placed to benefit from the growing global focus on electric vehicles and decarbonisation technologies, as well as international initiatives to diversify the supply of rare earths.
Peak Resources share price snapshot
The Peak Resources share price has posted a year-to-date return of 94%, extending the previous 12 month's return of 442%.
For context, the S&P / ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has posted a return of 20% over the last year.
Peak has a market capitalisation of $148 million at the time of writing.
