Mozambique’s Monte Muambe rare earth project has moved to the next stage of development after NeoTerra Group selected an American company to lead a $1.875 million US-funded pre-feasibility study.

• NeoTerra has selected Valentine Enterprises to lead a US-funded study of Mozambique’s Monte Muambe rare earth project.
• The appointment was disclosed in a regulatory announcement issued through the London Stock Exchange on August 20.
• The $1.875 million study is expected to begin in September, subject to final approval by the US Trade and Development Agency.
• Monte Muambe remains at an early stage, with no final investment decision or confirmed production date.

NeoTerra disclosed the selection in a regulatory announcement issued through the London Stock Exchange on Thursday, August 20, 2026.

The London-listed critical minerals company said Valentine Enterprises would lead the study, supported by SGS North America and New Dominion Consulting.

The appointment is subject to final approval by the US Trade and Development Agency, which is financing the work.

NeoTerra expects the study to begin in September with a kick-off meeting and a visit to Monte Muambe in Mozambique’s northwestern Tete province.

A short drilling campaign will follow to recover representative mineral samples for testing.

The work will examine how the rare earth minerals can be extracted and processed, estimate the likely cost of developing the mine and determine whether the project is technically and commercially viable.

It represents the next step after USTDA awarded a $1.875 million grant for the study in February and invited qualified American companies to compete for the contract.

US-backed study gets contractor

Valentine Enterprises will coordinate the pre-feasibility study and the specialist companies working on it.

SGS North America will provide technical support covering mineral testing, metallurgy, process engineering and project development.

New Dominion Consulting will handle areas including supply chains, sustainability, procurement and operations.

NeoTerra chief executive Cedric Simonet said the three companies had the technical expertise and knowledge of American supply chains required to advance the project.

“Valent, SGS and New Dominion all bring a reputation for excellence, and together they’re the right team to deliver this study,” Mr Simonet said in the regulatory announcement.

The study is intended to produce a more reliable assessment of Monte Muambe than the preliminary scoping study completed in 2023.

However, it does not mean construction is about to begin.

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After the pre-feasibility stage, NeoTerra would still need more detailed engineering and environmental work, project financing and a final investment decision before it could build the proposed mine and processing facility.

The company has not announced a confirmed date for production.

US funding was announced in February

The US government first indicated its intention to support Monte Muambe on February 8 during a meeting on American support for critical mining projects in sub-Saharan Africa.

NeoTerra, then known as Altona Rare Earths, disclosed the commitment in a regulatory announcement the following day.

USTDA formally signed the $1.875 million grant agreement with Monte Muambe Mining Ltda, NeoTerra’s Mozambican subsidiary, on February 27.

The agency said the study would conduct extensive tests to determine suitable extraction and processing methods while establishing the technical and financial requirements for full-scale development.

It subsequently launched a competitive process restricted to qualified US companies. The deadline for proposals was extended to May 11 before Valentine Enterprises and its partners were selected.

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The latest announcement is therefore not about fresh US funding. The development is the selection of the contractor that will carry out the previously approved work.

Altona Rare Earths changed its name to NeoTerra Group in June 2026 to reflect its expansion into several critical minerals, including rare earths, fluorspar, gallium, copper and silver.

A proposed $276 million mine

Monte Muambe is located in Moatize district in Tete, Mozambique’s main coal-producing province.

NeoTerra has reported a mineral resource of 13.6 million tonnes grading 2.42% total rare earth oxides. This is a company estimate prepared under the JORC standard used to classify and report mineral resources.

The deposit contains neodymium and praseodymium, which are used in high-strength permanent magnets found in electric vehicles, wind turbines, electronics and industrial machinery.

NeoTerra has also reported heavy rare earth elements, including dysprosium and terbium. These are added to permanent magnets to help them withstand high temperatures, making them particularly important for electric motors and some defence applications.

A scoping study released by the company in October 2023 estimated that the proposed mine would require an initial investment of $276.3 million.

The preliminary plan envisaged an open-pit operation processing 750,000 tonnes of ore annually and producing an average of 15,000 tonnes of mixed rare earth carbonate a year.

The mine was projected to operate for 18 years.

NeoTerra estimated a post-tax net present value of $283.3 million, an internal rate of return of 25% and a payback period of two-and-a-half years from the start of production.

Those figures are preliminary and are based on assumptions made at the scoping stage. The new pre-feasibility study is expected to test and refine them.

The eventual capital requirement, production plan and projected financial returns could change materially after further drilling, metallurgy and engineering work.

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Washington seeks alternatives to China

USTDA’s support for Monte Muambe is part of Washington’s attempt to develop sources of critical minerals outside China.

China produced about 270,000 tonnes of rare earth oxide equivalent in 2025, compared with 51,000 tonnes in the United States, according to US Geological Survey figures cited by the Congressional Research Service.

Its position is even stronger in rare earth processing and permanent magnet manufacturing, the more technically difficult and commercially valuable sections of the supply chain.

This dependence has become a national security concern for the United States because rare earth magnets are used in electric vehicles, renewable energy equipment, electronics, missiles and military aircraft.

China introduced export controls on seven heavy rare earth elements in April 2025 and later expanded restrictions to additional materials. The measures increased the urgency of American efforts to secure alternative supplies.

Washington is supporting other African critical-mineral projects, including the Longonjo rare earth project in Angola and the Phalaborwa development in South Africa.

Monte Muambe could give Mozambique a place in this emerging supply chain, but the project is still several stages away from becoming a mine.

USTDA’s grant finances technical work. It is not construction funding, an agreement to purchase the project’s future output or a guarantee that the mine will be developed.