Rare Earths Americas has expanded the mineralised footprint at its Homer-A ionic clay rare earth project in Goiás, Brazil by over 60% to about 3.5 km², with the main zone now extending 4.3 km and remaining open. Assays from 20 holes within the primary geochemical anomaly show 19 above cut-off, while drilling on the south-eastern margin has returned heavy rare earth oxides with dysprosium-terbium oxides reaching up to 8.7% of total rare earth oxides plus scandium. Only 22 of roughly 180 planned holes have been assayed, with 11,800 m of a 15,000 m 2026 programme already drilled and a maiden resource targeted for 2027.

Construction of Rio Tinto’s Nemaska lithium hydroxide plant at Bécancour, Quebec, more than 70% complete and backed by about C$1.2 billion in public funding, is now expected to remain paused through 2027, casting doubt on the previously committed 2028 start-up. The halt coincides with 68 layoffs and a sharp drop in Asian lithium carbonate spot prices to $12.90/kg from over $25/kg in May, pressuring project economics. Rio is still reviewing long-term spodumene feed from Nemaska’s Whabouchi deposit versus its wholly owned Galaxy project, with no decision yet.

Hudbay Minerals has cut its 2026 copper cash cost outlook to negative US$0.55 to negative US$0.35 per lb (after by-product credits) as Copper Mountain in British Columbia delivered positive free cash flow for the first time since its June 2023 acquisition, with the mill hitting 43,500 t/d in September and targeting 50,000 t/d by year-end. Third-quarter copper output rose 25% year-on-year to 30,152 tonnes and gold 30% to 69,513 oz, helping revenue more than double to a record US$765.9 million and allowing sustaining capital to come in about US$35 million below the US$435-million budget. The stronger operating base underpins Hudbay’s approval, alongside Mitsubishi, of the US$2.1-billion Copper World project in Arizona, where Hudbay expects to contribute about US$500 million from 2028 towards first production in H2 2029.