Rio Tinto has entered into a binding agreement to acquire the Platina Scandium project in Australia from Platina Resources.

The Platina project near Condobolin in central New South Wales is expected to produce up to 40tpy of scandium oxide over a 30-year mine life. Consequently, Rio will more than double its scandium production through the US$14M deal, slated for competition in H1 2023. In 2022, Rio Tinto became the first North American commercial producer of the critical mineral, operating out of its Rio Tinto Fer et Titane (RTFT) metallurgical complex in Sorel-Tracy, Canada. In the same year, the company announced further intentions to raise its scandium capacity four-fold, mainly through a joint investment program with the Government of Canada.

Scandium, an essential metal for the green economy and energy transition, is a rare and valuable element classified as a critical mineral by several countries, including the United States, Canada, and Australia. However, the global supply of contained scandium is small, with Project Blue estimates placing supply at around 36t in 2022, with production dominated by China. Solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) remain the principal demand application for scandium; however, the greatest potential for growth lies in its demand as an alloying element for aluminium alloys, particularly in the commercial aerospace and automotive sectors. Ultimately, Rio Tinto's aluminium business gives the company the competitive advantage of increasing its production of high-performance aluminium-scandium alloys.

With global supply projected to increase significantly, the impact on the metal’s usage could be game-changing. Moreover, this boost in production not only diversifies supply but may lead to significant market price reductions and increased adoption, which was previously hampered by supply shortages.