Friedland-backed Sunrise Energy Metals doubles scandium resource in Australia

Sunrise Energy Metals (ASX: SRL), the Robert Friedland-backed developer advancing the Syerston scandium project in New South Wales, has nearly doubled its scandium resource following a successful drilling campaign. According to the company, the updated Mineral Resource Estimate, released this week, confirms Syerston as the world’s largest and highest-grade scandium deposit at a time when global supply is under increasing strain.The revised estimate at a 300 parts per million cutoff now stands at 19,007 tonnes of contained scandium grading 414 ppm, representing a 98% increase in metal content, with all resources falling within the Measured and Indicated categories. At a higher 600 ppm cutoff, the contained scandium grew by 161% to 1,155 tonnes. The resource expansion comes at a pivotal moment for the scandium market. In April, China imposed new export licensing restrictions on the metal, a critical input in lightweight aerospace alloys, semiconductors, and advanced manufacturing. Total world scandium production was less than 40 tonnes in 2022. Demand, meanwhile, is tipped to surpass 110 tonnes a year by 2026.Over 90% of global demand comes from the US, for both civilian and defense applications. The majority of the supply, however, is controlled by China. Sunrise is positioning Syerston as a reliable Western source of scandium oxide. Australia currently has no scandium production or processing. Following the latest drilling results and resource upgrade, shares jumped by more than 15% in a single session, giving the company a market capitalization of about A$265 million ($176M). Attention now turns to the updated feasibility study, expected before the end of September, which will incorporate the expanded resource base. Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Mining.com Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Mining.com