Rare Element Resources
The Bear Lodge Project is positioned to be a major North American source of rare earth elements (REEs). The quality and quantity of the mineralization at Bear Lodge make it a world-class mining district and a dependable, long-term source for the REEs that technology demands.
The Project is rich in the REEs critical to high-strength permanent magnet manufacturing and are higher-valued and expected to experience faster demand growth and better price support over the long term. It is situated in one of the best mining districts in the world. The mine site is ideally located in northeastern Wyoming, just off of I-90, and has easy access to power and supporting infrastructure. The processing facility will be located nearby, in the town of Upton, Wyoming, in an established industrial area. Both communities contain a ready workforce, skilled in natural resource development.
Exploration at Bear Lodge began in 1972 with a focus on copper and molybdenum but soon shifted to rare earth elements (REEs) after their economic potential was recognized. The U.S. Geological Survey confirmed the area as one of the largest REE resources in the U.S., though early efforts by Molycorp stalled due to weak markets. From 1987 to 1991, Hecla Mining identified key deposits like Bull Hill and Whitetail Ridge while exploring for REEs and gold. Rare Element Resources resumed REE exploration in 2004, drilling nearly 500 holes totaling over 285,000 feet and identifying multiple target zones. This work greatly advanced the geological understanding of the area and will support future resource development.
The Bear Lodge Mountains are part of the Black Hills Uplift, formed by the intrusion of a Tertiary-aged alkaline igneous complex during the waning stages of the Late Cretaceous-early Tertiary Laramide Orogeny. The uplift has a northwesterly orientation and extends from the western South Dakota – Nebraska border through northeastern Wyoming into south-eastern Montana. The exposed basement consists of Archean and Proterozoic schist, gneiss, and granite overlain by Paleozoic and Mesozoic clastic and carbonate sedimentary rocks that were subsequently eroded from higher elevations. The Paleozoic and Mesozoic rocks were subjected to large-scale monoclinal folding that encircles the Black Hills Uplift. Younger Oligocene, Miocene, and Pliocene sediments overlie the older sedimentary and igneous rocks at lower elevations of the uplift.
The Bear Lodge mining district is in the Bear Lodge Mountains, near the western end of the northern Black Hills intrusive belt. The Bear Lodge Mountains expose and are underlain by multiple alkaline plugs, sills and dikes intruded into Archean basement and Paleozoic and Mesozoic sediments approximately 38 to 51 million years ago, forming an elongate, northwest-trending dome.
The Bear Lodge REE deposits are sited near the axis of the elongate dome and are associated with carbonatite and silicocarbonatite dikes, veins, and stockwork hosted by the Bull Hill and Whitetail diatremes. The northwest alignment of diatremes extends from Bull Hill through Whitetail Ridge to Carbon Hill and coincides with numerous north- to northwest-striking alkalic dikes and mineralized zones.
Carbonatite and silicocarbonatite dikes strike northwesterly to northerly and intrude diatremal heterolithic breccias and surrounding trachyte, phonolite and igneous intrusion breccias. Within the Bear Lodge deposit, the dikes are concentrated within the margins of the diatreme and in adjacent wall rocks along the northwest corridor, extending from the south and west flanks of Bull Hill through the Whitetail diatreme towards the Carbon Hill diatreme. The carbonatite bodies range in size from veinlets to dikes that can reach more than 15 meters in width. A swarm of wide, steeply dipping carbonatite dikes cut across the southwestern flank of Bull Hill. The dike swarm has been traced over 300 meters along strike and down dip, and it remains open in the down dip direction. Rare earth-bearing minerals within the carbonatites are mainly ancylite and rare earth fluorocarbonates of the bastnaesite group.
The proposed operations outlined below for the Bear Lodge Project are based on economic work completed in 2014 and 2015 and updated in 2024. The proposed operations are contained in the Company’s 2026 Plan of Operations which is under review for the permitting and licensing process.
As currently proposed, operations could consist of the following:
Mining
The proposed mining operation would involve small-scale open pit methods at the Bull Hill deposit initially, resulting in an estimated 17 year mining period. Current project planning anticipates approximately 22 years from the start of construction through final reclamation. Further resource targets have been identified, including at Whitetail Ridge, where rare earth mineralization begins just below the surface. Conventional truck and excavator techniques would be used, with topsoil and overburden removed and stored for future reclamation. Blasting may be needed to break up large ore blocks, which would then be hauled to designated stockpiles. Mining would progress in expanding benches to a depth of approximately 400 feet below the lowest pit-rim elevation, with estimated new surface disturbance on National Forest System lands of approximately 287 acres.
Physical Upgrade (PUG) Plant
The proposed PUG Plant would concentrate rare earth minerals by removing barren rock using a closed, water-efficient system involving crushing, washing, screening, and magnetic sorting. Initially, high-grade ore that doesn't require upgrading would be processed. Over time, mid- and high-grade ores would be processed, while lower-grade material would be stockpiled. Designed to handle varying ore types, the PUG Plant aims to maximize rare earth recovery and grade while reducing the volume of material transported daily to the Hydromet Plant.
Hydrometallurgical (Hydromet) Plant
The proposed Hydromet Plant may be located in Upton, WY—about 40 miles from the mine—would process mineral concentrate delivered from the PUG Plant using a proprietary flowsheet developed by the company and its partners. Designed as a “zero discharge” facility, the plant would recycle most chemicals and water to minimize environmental impact and costs. Tailings would be treated and stored nearby, and isolated thorium would be sent to a licensed off-site disposal facility.
RER recognizes the need for the rapid exploration and development of rare earth projects to help meet growing domestic demand and realizes it must be done to minimize the impact to human health and the environment.
Therefore, RER will conduct exploration and mine development activities to ensure that:
Over the last several years, RER has collected baseline environmental data and identified actions that can help mitigate the impact of its operations on the environment. Steps that have been identified include:
Reclamation is the process of restoring land that has been disturbed by mining activity to a similar pre-mining topography and prior land use or an alternative beneficial use agreed upon by project stakeholders. The preparation and planning for mine reclamation activities occurs as part of the environmental assessment and permitting process. Throughout the life of the mine, reclamation activities will be ongoing, with the majority being undertaken once mining is completed.
Click to view the most recent technical report on RER’s Bear Lodge Project or our corporate presentation and overview of the Bear Lodge Project.
Current project planning anticipates an approximate 22-year duration for activities on National Forest System (NFS) lands, from the start of construction through final reclamation. This estimate includes two years of construction, open pit mining on NFS lands and ore upgrading on private land for 17 years, additional ore upgrading one year after mining, and two years of reclamation. The final project schedule will depend on permitting, engineering, operational, and economic considerations.
National forests are public lands and by law are available for multiple uses, such as mining. RER holds mineral claims within the national forest, and the U.S. Forest Service controls the surface rights. Federal mining laws allow development of mines and quarries so long as their development, operation and closure meet all applicable federal laws and regulations.
RER’s operations will provide different job opportunities across two distinct locations: the Bull Hill mine near Sundance and the processing facility near Upton.
Bull Hill Mine – Sundance, WY
Current preliminary planning estimates indicate an average of approximately 150–225 direct construction jobs during the two-year build, with employment potentially increasing during peak construction. Once operational, the current planning estimate is approximately 80–110 direct operating jobs. Construction jobs are planned to be temporary, while direct operating jobs are permanent. Potential positions include heavy-equipment and haul-truck operators, crushing and screening personnel, mechanics, maintenance technicians, drivers, environmental and safety professionals, security personnel, supervisors, and administrative support. Chemical separation would not occur at the Bull Hill Mine near Sundance, WY. Final workforce levels will depend on detailed engineering, construction sequencing, contractor staffing, and procurement decisions.
Upton Processing Facility – Upton, WY
The existing Demonstration Plant near Upton currently employs approximately 30 workers. Development of a future commercial-scale processing facility would also create temporary construction and skilled-trade jobs before operations begin, followed by a permanent operating workforce.
RER remains committed to providing employment opportunities in Wyoming and, whenever possible, hiring locally and utilizing local businesses and contractors.
The Project will utilize designated access roads and haul routes for employee transportation, equipment delivery, materials delivery, ore transportation, and reclamation activities. Road use, improvements, and traffic management will be coordinated through the applicable federal, state, and local agencies, including the U.S. Forest Service, Crook County, WYDOT where applicable, and other permitting agencies.
RER will be responsible for maintaining project roads used for operations, including dust control, grading, snow removal, drainage maintenance, and other routine maintenance measures. Transportation-related impacts, roadway improvements, and traffic management measures will continue to be evaluated through the permitting and environmental review process.
The estimated surface disturbance on U.S. Forest Service managed land associated with the Bear Lodge Project is expected to be under 300 acres. For safety reasons, roads and non-motorized trails within active mining areas and fenced areas are expected to be closed for the life of the mine. This is only a small portion of the 200,000 acres of land included in the Wyoming section of the Black Hills National Forest. Non-motorized trails on National Forest System lands outside of fenced areas are expected to remain open to the extent possible for hikers, mountain bikers, and horseback riders.
The U.S. Forest Service will evaluate recreational use and public access considerations through the environmental review and permitting process.
The Mine Plan of Operations includes measures to protect wildlife, sensitive species, and habitat within and near the project area. Additional wildlife evaluations, environmental review, and agency consultation will continue as part of the permitting process. The project will be reviewed in accordance with applicable federal and state environmental requirements, including those related to protected species and wildlife habitat.
RER has conducted hydraulic and hydrogeologic studies to evaluate potential effects to surface water and groundwater resources. Routine groundwater and surface-water baseline studies began in 2010, providing a long-standing database of baseline data. The project includes plans for water management measures such as diversion channels, sediment control features, pit dewatering infrastructure, surface water and groundwater monitoring, and permit-based management of any discharge, if required. Potential effects to water resources will continue to be evaluated through the permitting and environmental review process, and mitigation measures will be applied as appropriate.
Materials remaining after mining and processing, including waste rock, tailings, or other residual materials, will be managed in accordance with applicable Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality requirements. Final material management and reclamation criteria will be determined through the applicable permitting and reclamation planning processes. Reclamation bonding will be required prior to final approvals to construct the mine and commercial plant.
All dust generating devices would be outfitted with dust suppression and/or collecting bag houses. Emissions from the equipment would be captured and cleaned in a scrubber system before being vented. The system will be designed to recover and recycle the majority of the water and chemical used in the processing.
The recovery of rare earth elements would utilize hydrochloric, nitric and oxalic acids, ammonium hydroxide and sodium carbonate. These chemicals will be managed in accordance with applicable local, State, and Federal safety regulations and requirements to ensure safety to workers, the community and the environment.
No chemical processing is planned to be used at the Bull Hill mine outside of Sundance.
Exposure estimates for the general public residing near the Bull Hill Mine and Upton Plant site indicate that radiation exposure will be similar to background levels within the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s (USNRC) public health standards. Any areas where permitting is required to ensure safe handling of higher levels of naturally occurring radiation material (NORM) within the ore will include safe handling and monitoring safeguards to meet licensing requirements.
At the Bull Hill Mine, dust and air emissions would be regulated by the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality Air Quality Division. Activities involving low level NORM would also be regulated, where applicable, through the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality’s Source Material Program.
Rare-earth ores naturally contain small amounts of uranium, thorium, and their decay products. These substances are referred to as naturally occurring radioactive material, or NORM, because they occur naturally within the surrounding rock and are not created by mining or processing.
If regulated concentration or possession thresholds are reached, the material becomes subject to Wyoming’s source-material licensing requirements. Requiring a license does not by itself mean that the material presents a significant risk to the public; it ensures that appropriate controls are established before the material is handled or concentrated.
The Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality (WDEQ) administers the Source Material Program under authority transferred from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Applicable licensing requirements may address material handling and storage, radiation monitoring, worker and public protection, recordkeeping, waste management, facility closure, and long-term financial assurance.
WDEQ reclamation criteria have a stated goal of reestablishing the surface to its pre-mining land use. It is our expectation that top soil will be stored and returned to areas of ground disturbance. Reclamation, where possible, will take place concurrent with operations and will be expected to be completed within two years of closure. Monitoring will continue following closure and reclamation until stabilization of soil, vegetation and water has been reached. Specific reclamation details will be determined through the NEPA environmental review and applicable state and federal permitting processes.
WDEQ determines the amount of the reclamation bond. The amount will be updated annually over the life of the mine. The WDEQ updates unit rates for reclamation activities on an annual basis to adjust for inflation and contingency amounts.
No, there will be no impact to Devils Tower. Bear Lodge is located 22 miles from Devils Tower. Expected blasting will be localized and directed into the rock in a vertical direction. The rock is oxidized and softer, so blasting will be minimal.
Rare earth development in the United States occurs under comprehensive federal and state environmental, health, safety, and reclamation requirements. RER is committed to conducting mine development, operations, reclamation, and plant operations in Wyoming in a manner that protects workers, the public, and the environment. The project will be reviewed through applicable federal and state permitting processes, including NEPA, WDEQ permitting, water quality, air quality, reclamation, wildlife, cultural resource, and other environmental requirements.