Lynas Rare Earths Limited has announced that its subsidiary, Lynas Malaysia, has been advised that its licence to import and process lanthanide concentrate is now valid until 1 January 2024.
According to the company, the change has been made by the Minister of Malaysia’s Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MOSTI) in response to the appeals filed by Lynas under the Atomic Energy Licence Act 1984.
The licence variation enables the Lynas Malaysia cracking and leaching plant to continue to operate until 1 January 2024 and removes the requirement for a shutdown at the plant prior to 1 January 2024.
The company previously applied to the MOSTI Minister for the removal of the conditions that limit operations at the Malaysia facility, saying they represent a significant variation from the conditions under which Lynas made the initial decision to invest in Malaysia.
It added that the conditions do not follow the recommendations of the Malaysian Government’s 2018 executive review committee report on Lynas Malaysia’s operations, the Atomic Energy Licencing Board’s own audits of the company’s operations or any of the three prior independent expert scientific reviews of the company’s operations in the country.
Lynas noted that it will seek a review of the processes with respect to the conditions previously set to ensure that the company is treated fairly and equitably as a foreign direct investor and as a significant employer and contributor to the Malaysian economy.
