Lynas Rare Earths Ltd. said planned maintenance at its refinery in Malaysia would cut production this quarter, but expects stockpiles of the critical minerals will ensure that customer orders aren’t affected.
The works for kiln maintenance will last for about one month, Lynas said in an update on Thursday, without giving precise dates. There’ll also be a two-week outage at its mine in Australia for electrical works.
Lynas is one of just two major rare-earths suppliers outside China, which has a near-total stranglehold over the supply and processing of the metals used in permanent magnets for defense, electric vehicle and renewables applications.
"The primary objective of this shutdown is to execute necessary, preventative maintenance and that concerns in particular one kiln,” Pol Le Roux, acting chief executive officer, said in a call with analysts. Le Roux added that he was "very comfortable” with stockpiles and orders would continue to be filled.
The company has struggled recently to maintain output at its mine in Western Australia due to variations in ore quality and electricity supply. The rare earths dug there - including its key product, neodymium-praseodymium - are then exported to the Malaysia plant for processing.
This year the company began shipping refined "heavy” rare earths that became a focus of geopolitical tensions in 2025 when China placed strict controls on their export. The miner also announced an all-share deal to buy Meteoric Resources Ltd. giving it access to an emerging supplier in Brazil.
Lynas shares added 1.5% to A$12.70 in Sydney on Thursday after the update. - Bloomberg
