Posted on 11/10/2023 4:54:34 AM PST by Libloather
A 71-year-old investor who bought an old Wyoming coal mine sight-unseen for $2million has learned that it may contain $37 billion worth of 'rare earth' minerals.
Randall Atkins, the CEO of Ramaco Rescources, bought the Brook Mine in Sheridan 12 years ago - but it wasn't until years later that researchers checked if the ground contained elements that are used for semiconductors, missiles and solar cells.
He was shocked to find out that his mine may contain the largest rare-earth deposit in the United States - and the materials may be worth 18,500 times what he paid for the land. The last US mine to be found with such rare materials was found in 1952.
Atkins' 6,000 acres of land in the Powder River Basin has tested positive for gallium and germanium, and estimates show that there could be 1.1 million metric tons of oxides in just a quarter of plot, reports the Wall Street Journal.
This is compared to the US average annual consumption of 8,300 metric tons.
Neodymium, praseodymium, dysprosium and terbium have also been found.
Magnets made from neodymium are used in hard disc drives and mobile phones, while praseodymium is used in high-strength alloys in aircraft engines.
Dysprosium is used to make control rods in nuclear reactors, and terbium is used in low-energy lightbulbs and mercury lamps.
His rare earth elements are now being sold for more than $1 million per metric ton.
Kentucky-born Atkins and his team are now hoping to mine the elements, process them into what's needed for green energy - including for motors in electric vehicles and offshore wind turbines.
Ramaco Rescources, which is worth $620 million, typically focuses on mining metallurgical coal. It was Randall's father, Orin Atkins, who built Ashland Oil into a multinational energy conglomerate.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
I read an article on this mine early yesterday morning. We immediately purchased some shares in the company (METC). It was an extremely good move as it is now three dollars over our purchase price.
I forgot to tell you in above - Sound on!
He should probably dump it on someone before the green energy scam is dumped by most because its all a failed scam.
Amazing!!!!
a mine is 15 years away minimum....
That will be my guess too. They would rather have us dependent on China.
You can be sure this US Government will be trying to tax him EXTRA because of his “windfall profits.”
Not yet! Soon a government entity of one sort or another will miraculously discover an endangered species of head lice, or ants on the property, and forbid all future development.
Jed Clampett approves.
Countdown to the time it takes Biden to order the development of the mine stopped......
I thought it would turn out that he was a savvy investor and not someone who lucked out on deer hunting property or some such.
Isn’t just labor price. It’s mostly environmental regulations.
I am doing work in a related field, converting coal into graphene (a by product would be the leftover rare earths).
If anyone knows any investors, there is a huge opportunity with our company to outdo the pot of gold this article talks about. Our process is actually further along and more efficient.
Materials used for semiconductors are always needed, green energy or no. He’d be a fool to part with it.
If you know investors, we have a better process. We already have many elemets in the separation process already in operation. The rare earth isn’t the gold mine, it is the graphene.
“a mine is 15 years away minimum...”
The company I work for already has the same elements in process that can use existing coal deposits. Looking for investors.
Looks awfully connected as well. “Savvy” may be a nice way of saying that.
Since the academic load was pretty heavy, the majority of the students spent most of their day and evening in the law school, you met or could find almost anyone quickly. People actively helped each other with assignments. In my first semester, I had a problem grasping a legal concept. I asked a random third year student for help. She spent about 20 minutes explaining the concept to me. I later learned that she was the editor of the law review. You could drink alcohol in the study area and we did. Guns were not considered a big thing. I had a classmate, who became very interested in turkey hunting. So he would go turkey hunting before class and put his shotgun in the back of his first class and store it in his cubby hole for the rest of the day. No one thought or said a thing. Imagine a very large well behaved co-ed fraternity.
Rare earths are not that rare, and the USA has tons of them. The issue is mining them at a profit.
Any American mine has to compete with Chinese ones paying slave wages, and none of them can.
************
Bingo!
“There’s the rub.”
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.