Aclara Resources
| Type | Public |
|---|---|
| Industry | Rare-earth elements |
| Genre | Mining |
| Founded | 2021 |
Area served | Brazil, Chile, United States |
Key people | Ramón Barúa (CEO)[1] |
| Parent | Hochschild Mining (55.9%) |
Aclara Resources is a rare-earth elements company with mining projects in Brazil and Chile and mineral processing projects in the United States.[2] It is a publicly owned company whose major stakes are held by Hochschild Mining (55.9%) and CAP (10.1%).[2][A] It is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange.[3]
The mines in Brazil and Chile are planned to supply a rare-earth separator plant that is under construction as of March 2026 in Louisiana in the US.[2] In 2025 the company claimed that by 2028 it expected to supply more than 75% of the US demand of dysprosium (Dy) and terbium (Tb).[5]
The company traces its origins to 2018 when Hochschild Mining purchased 6.2% of the Chilean company BioLantánidos[B] which was owned by the Minería Activa-administered FIP Lantanidos fund of LarrainVial.[8][9][10][11] In this initial investment Hochschild Mining obtained an option for further purchases.[8] In 2019 Hochschild Mining gained full ownership of BioLantánidos by buying the remaining 93.8% stakes.[9][12] Later, in 2021 Hochschild Mining rebraded the company to Aclara Resources and inscribed it in the Toronto Stock Exchange.[11]
Brazil
[edit]
In Brazil Aclara Resources is focused on providing magnetic rare-earth oxides (MREOs) to a magnet production facility in South Carolina, US.[13] The Carina project in Nova Roma, Goiás[14] claimed in November 2025 to be the first HREE (Dy, Tb, Pr, Nr) mining project in the world to declare reserves hosted in ionic clays.[15]
Chile
[edit]In Chile BioLantánidos, the predecessor of Aclara Resources, begun in 2016 plans to commercially exploit rare-earth metals nex to Penco.[2][11] This project, known as Penco Module (Spanish: Módulo Penco), had as of March 2026 its environmental impact assessment under evaluation by the Environmental Assessment Service.[2] If approved the mine is planned to start production in 2028,[16] delivering an average of 811 tons of RRE-oxides annually.[2] In Chile the company has faced accusations of starting the 2026 Chilean wildfires to pave the way for the approval of the Penco Module.[16][17]
Hochschild Mining claimed in 2019 that no use of explosive will be needed for the extraction of REEs, whose mineralizations reportedly does not go deeper than 20 to 30 m below the ground.[8]
United States
[edit]In the United States the company is building a REE plant in the Port of Vinton which is part of "a wave of North American investment in rare earths separation, processing and magnet manufacturing".[5] Aclara Resources has co-developed technology with Virginia Tech.[5]
Notes
[edit]- ↑ In late March 2026 CAP announced it was seeking to increase its participation in Aclara Resources from 10% to 13%.[3][4]
- ↑ BioLántanidos was a trade name of REE UNO SpA.[6] This company in turn emerged between 2012 and 2014 from a exploratory drilling campaign that was carried out in Penco by Fondo Fénix, a public–private fund financed in part by the Production Development Corporation (CORFO).[7]
References
[edit]- ↑ Vera, Matías (2026-03-30). "Las reuniones que ha tenido el biministro Mas con grupos mineros y eléctricos para sondear permisos pendientes de proyectos". La Tercera (in Spanish). Retrieved 2026-03-31.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 Badal, Ignacio (2026-03-14). "Tierras raras en Chile: los proyectos que podrían llamar la atención de EE.UU". La Tercera (in Spanish). Retrieved 2026-03-25.
- 1 2 Reyes, Verónica. "CAP remarca foco en tierras raras en Bío Bío y Brasil y aumenta su participación en Aclara Resources". Radio Bío-Bío (in Spanish). Retrieved 2026-03-31.
- ↑ Naveas, Jonathan (2026-03-31). "CAP aumentará su participación en Aclara y reforzará su presencia en tierras raras". Redimin (in Spanish). Retrieved 2026-03-31.
- 1 2 3 McClelland, Colin (2025-10-24). "Aclara jumps on US heavy REE plant plan". mining.com. Retrieved 2026-04-15.
- ↑ Arroyo Olea, Javier; Saavedra Contreras, Viera (2023). Una defensa de cerro a mar. La lucha de Penco contra la minería de Tierras Raras: Otra cara de la transición energética (PDF) (in Spanish). Observatorio Latinoamericano de Conflictos Ambientales. p. 19.
- ↑ "La abandonada planta piloto que impulsó el negocio minero de tierras raras en los cerros de Penco". Resumen (in Spanish). 2024-07-21. Retrieved 2026-04-08.
- 1 2 3 "Hochschild Mining compra participación en yacimiento chileno por US$ 56 millones". Gestión (in Spanish). 2019-10-02. Retrieved 2026-04-08.
- 1 2 "Hochschild buys rare earth deposit in Chile: Correction". Argus. 2019-10-03. Retrieved 2026-04-06.
- ↑ Valencia, Francisca (2020-10-08). "Minera BioLantánidos: El proyecto de extracción de "tierras raras" que preocupa a Penco y tensiona a la Municipalidad". El Ciudadano (in Spanish). Retrieved 2026-04-07.
- 1 2 3 Rivas, Francisca (2021-12-12). "Proyecto de tierras raras BioLantánidos ahora es Aclara". Radio Bío-Bío (in Spanish). Retrieved 2026-04-06.
- ↑ "Mineira Activa Sells Stake in BioLantanidos to Hochschild". Lavca. 2019-10-02. Retrieved 2026-04-06.
- ↑ Zadeh, John (24 June 2025). "Brazil's Rare Earth Startups: Unlocking 23% of Global Reserves". Discovery Alert. Retrieved 15 September 2025.
- ↑ "Site visit report: Aclara's Carina project shows progress towards Rare Earths supply diversification". benchmarkminerals.com. Retrieved 2026-03-31.
- ↑ Pizzoleo, Javiera (2025-11-07). "Aclara se convierte en la primera empresa en el mundo en reportar reservas minerales de tierras raras pesadas provenientes de arcillas iónicas". Reporte Minero & Energético (in Spanish). Retrieved 2026-03-31.
- 1 2 "Incendios y acusaciones sacuden planes de Aclara y proyecto de tierras raras Penco en Chile". BNamericas (in Spanish). 2026-01-22. Retrieved 2026-03-26.
- ↑ de Vicente, Agustín (2026-01-19). "Aclara niega rumores sobre el origen del fuego en Penco". Reporte Minero & Energético (in Spanish). Retrieved 2026-03-25.
