The plant, currently under construction at the company’s Rio Tinto Fer et Titane (RTFT) metallurgical operation in Sorel-Tracy, will begin commercial production in June this year. The RTFT Research & Development Center in Sorel-Tracy has been producing scandium oxide since the second half of 2019.
Rio Tinto will invest US$6 million to build a first module with capacity for 3 tonnes per year of scandium oxide. Other modules may be added to the plant, in line with market demand, Rio Tinto said.
According to the US Geological Survey, the worldwide scandium market is around 15 tonnes per year.
The government of Québec will contribute around US$650,000 to the project...
