IperionX has received key development permits for the heavy minerals Titan Project in Tennessee.

IperionX completed a scoping study on the Titan Project in 2022, looking at the economics of the titanium, rare earths (REE) and zircon concentration at the site. After obtaining National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System and Surface Mining permits from the Tennessee Department of Environment & Conservation, the company aims to complete the remaining regulatory requirements of the project by the end of 2023.

In July, IperionX secured material permits to advance its titanium metal demonstration plant in Virginia, which is capable of processing 100% scrap as feedstock to produce commercial titanium metal powders for powder, melt (ingot) and mill products. First titanium metal production is targeted for Q1 2024, with scrap feedstock offtake agreed with Aperam – also announced in July.

With the stated ability of IperionX’s HAMR technology to switch between recycled and primary feed, the Titan project would secure an integrated feed for the company’s titanium metal ambitions, including by-product rare earths and zircon heavy mineral sands (HMS). For rare earths, HMS is already a growing part of the global supply chain, with most new rare earth supply in recent years coming from monazite recovered from HMS deposits, including in the US.

The titanium industry is recovering from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and the grounding of the Boeing Max on air travel, the metal’s largest end-use market. The USA is already one of the largest consumers of scrap for titanium, with the industry suffering from very high losses in the final product milling – known as buy-to-fly ratios. Additive manufacturing (AM) is forecast to have a significant impact on the total titanium demand by reducing this ratio. IperionX’s plans to target powder metallurgy through its HAMR process could help accelerate powder feedstock availability for advancing AM, if successfully commissioned.