Ucore Rare Metals Inc. July 18 said it has partnered with an undisclosed major Alberta oil sands producer to recover rare earth elements and other technology metals from Alberta oil sands operations.

"This high profile project truly shows the versatility of SuperLig across a diverse range of feed-stock alternatives, including not just in-situ mining facilities, but process-flow and tailings management facilities as well," said Ucore President and CEO Jim McKenzie. "The substantial production volumes available through oil sands production, in combination with the extraordinary selectivity of SuperLig, offers a compelling large-scale industrial opportunity for the SuperLig platform."

The partnership has obtained a federal grant through Canada's Industrial Research Assistance Program. The C$220,000 grant will reimburse costs for expenditures related to the creation of a low organic and carbon content leach solution from the oil sands process flow, and the separation of a selection of high-value metals using SuperLig.

"Given the competitive state of world oil markets, liberating high-value commodities such as REE, titanium, scandium, niobium, vanadium, tantalum, and a host of other tech metals, offers the potential to change the economics of the oil sands process," added McKenzie.

Under the terms of the partnership, Ucore and its Alberta oil partner will equally absorb the net costs of the project, after grant contributions.

The separation of metals from the oil sands derived leach solution will take place at IBC Advanced Technologies' facility in Utah, which is where the SuperLig-One plant is in the final stage of separating critical rare earth elements from a pregnant leach solution derived from Ucore's Bokan Mountain project in Southeast Alaska.

-SHANE LASLEY