Highlights
- Everest Metals has appointed Jon Starink as Senior Technical Consultant
- Mr Starink has more than 40 years of experience in mining and exploration with specialised expertise in engineering and process design
- The appointment aims to fast-track the next phase of work at the Company’s Mt Edon Critical Minerals Project which contains a world-class rubidium resource
- Rubidium extraction and purification testwork at ECU’s Mineral Recovery Research Centre (MRRC) is ongoing following successful recovery achievements[1]
- Mt Edon has an initial JORC Inferred Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) of
3.6 million tonnes @ 0.22% Rb2O and 0.07% Li2O (0.10% Rb2O cut-off)2
Everest Metals Corporation Ltd (ASX: EMC) (“EMC” or “the Company”) is pleased to announce the appointment of Jon Starink as Senior Technical Consultant to lead the development of its rubidium processing and marketing strategy for the Company’s Mt Edon Critical Minerals Project (“Mt Edon”).
EMC has been working with Edith Cowan University (“ECU”) through a research agreement for direct rubidium extraction at ECU’s Mineral Recovery Research Centre (“MRRC”). Intellectual property developed during the course of the research agreement will be the property of the Company and ECU has the rights to commercially exploit such intellectual property. Mr Starink’s appointment coincides with scale up pilot plant processing and future developments which EMC and ECU are jointly planning.[2]
Mr. Starink has more than 40 years of mining industry expertise, offering engineering and process design experience, as well as corporate finance advisory services to international firms.
EMC’s Executive Chairman and CEO Mark Caruso commented:
“We are excited to have Jon join the Everest team. His vast knowledge and specialised expertise make him an invaluable leader for the Mt Edon Rubidium processing development and marketing strategy. Jon’s appointment comes at a crucial time, as he is overseeing the next stage of ECU’s Rubidium extraction and purification report, expected to be received in November 2024.”
Mr Starink’s role will focus on advancing the next phase of work at the Mt Edon Critical Minerals Project, including:
- Collaborating with the ECU MRRC, on patent application for rubidium extraction process
- Offtake discussions and marketing
- Scoping and feasibility studies
- Development of grant application for scale up pilot plant processing
- Pilot plant design and implementation
Mr. Starink is a Fellow of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, a Fellow of the Institution of Engineers, Australia and a Fellow of the Institution of Chemical Engineers. He is also a Member of the Royal Australian Chemical Institute, the Metallurgical Society and the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining.
He holds a Bachelor of Science with First Class Honours, a Bachelor of Chemical Engineering with First Class Honours, and a Master of Applied Science, all from the University of Sydney. He is recognised as a Chartered Professional Engineer, Chartered Scientist, and Chartered Chemist. Additionally, he is registered with the National Engineers Register (Australia), the APEC Engineers Register, and the International Professional Engineers Register.
Mt Edon is located in the Mid-West region of Western Australia and has an initial Inferred Mineral Resource of 3.6 million tonnes grading 0.22% Rb2O, and 0.07% Li2O (at 0.10% Rb2O cut-off)[3].
Table 1: Mt Edon Maiden Mineral Resource Estimate (JORC Code 2012)
| Category | Tonnes (Mt) | Rb2O (%) | Contained Rb2O (t) | Li2O (%) | Contained Li2O (t) |
| Inferred | 3.6 | 0.22 | 7,900 | 0.07 | 2,500 |
| Total | 3.6 | 0.22 | 7,900 | 0.07 | 2,500 |
- Mineral Resources are classified and reported in accordance with JORC Code (2012) and effective date of MRE is 20 August 2024.
- Mineral Resource estimated at a 0.10% Rb2O cut-off.
- Mineral Resource is contained within mining licence M59/714.
- The estimate of the Mineral Resource may be materially affected by any unknown environmental, permitting, legal, title, taxation, socio-political, marketing or other relevant issues.
- All tabulated data have been rounded.
RUBIDIUM OVERVIEW
Applications and Importance
Rubidium (Rb) is a critical raw material for various high-tech applications, including the development of new energy conversion technologies and new communication technologies. Key applications include:
- Defence and Military: Night vision imaging, special glass, radiation detectors, photoelectric tubes, radio electronic tubes and military infrared signal lights.
- Aerospace: ion propulsion engines and atomic clocks.
- Communications: Ion cloud communications and fibre optic communications.
- Emerging Energy Power Generation: Materials for magnetohydrodynamic power generation and thermionic power conversion.
- Medical: Sedatives, tranquilisers and medications for treating epilepsy and synthetic alkaline solvents.
- Special Glass: Enhancing glass conductivity, increasing lifespan and stability.
- Industrial Catalysts: Widely used in ammonia synthesis, sulfuric acid synthesis, hydrogenation, oxidation and polymerisation reactions.
- Electronic Devices: Important materials for photovoltaic cells, photoemission tubes, TV camera tubes and photomultiplier tubes.
Researchers have also recently proposed the use of rubidium for chemical storage within hydrogen batteries, expanding the potential market for this critical mineral[4].
Production and Market Trends
Despite the breadth of applications and demand for rubidium and caesium and their hydrides, global production of Cs and Rb is significantly lower than that of other alkali metals, and the cost per kg is substantially higher than lithium, sodium or potassium. Due to the gradual depletion of caesium resources, but the continued demand of these industries, a replacement is required, with Rb being a suitable candidate. The downstream application fields of rubidium salts are rapidly growing, enhancing the Company’s market advantage in this sector. As a result, Rb has been listed as one of the 35 critical minerals by several countries around the globe including USA and Japan.
According to the U.S. Geological Survey (2023)[5], global Rb resources are relatively scarce, with most resources containing limited Rb content. With the increasing interest in Rb resources in recent years, several granite-hosted Rb deposits/resources in leucogranite pluton have been discovered in China but all of them are very low grade, ranging 0.12-0.15% Rb2O[6].
Several market factors support growth in demand for Rubidium and underpin the current price of ~USD1,200/kg[7]. Among these, there is significant global demand for newer and faster electronic products due to the rapid pace of innovation, technology advancement and R&D activities in the electronics industry. This increasing demand for Rb, coupled with the fact that Rb is difficult to source due to extremely limited global production, underpins the extremely high price of Rb products.
North America holds a significant share of the rubidium market in terms of both market share and revenue. However, like most critical minerals, China maintains control of the market. Commodity analysts believe if more rubidium was produced, the market could grow rapidly and therefore its very small market size can be partially attributed to supply constraints, rather than a lack of demand.
NEXT STEPS
Everest has a clear strategy to continue its development of Mt Edon Critical Mineral Project, with the following steps set for delivery over the coming months:
- Continued discussion with potential commercial customers
- Rubidium Extraction and Purification testwork results expected in November 2024
- Phase 2 Resource Drilling scheduled for early 2025
- Scoping study expected to be completed in the March 2925 quarter
[1] ASX: EMC Announcement “Successful Recovery of Rubidium from Mt Edon Critical Mineral Project” dated 24 July 2024
[2] ASX: EMC Announcement “EMC to Advance Mt Edon Critical Mineral Project Through Rubidium and Industrial Mica Product Development” dated 27 February 2024
[3] ASX: EMC announcement; EMC Delivers World-Class Rubidium Resource At Mt Edon Project, WA, dated 21 August 2024
[4] S. Matalucci, May 2024, Researchers propose use of caesium, rubidium for hydrogen batteries, pv-magazine.
[5] U.S. Geological Survey, 2023, Mineral Commodity Summaries 2023
[6] Ore Geology reviews, Volume 141, February 2022, 104636
