RareX appoints WSP for Mrima Hill social and enviro planning
Released
Released
Announcement PDF
ASX Release
27 May 2025
RareX appoints WSP to lead social and environmental planning for
Mrima Hill
Engage with this announcement at the RareX investor hub.
Highlights
• Leading global advisory firm WSP appointed to lead environmental and social foundational planning work
for the proposed Mrima Hill Critical Minerals Project in Kenya, supported by local, Kenyan-based teams
and experts in socio-environmental management and governance.
•
Mrima Hill is the subject of a proposal submitted by the RareX–Iluka Consortium, along with supporting
partners, including WSP, as announced to the ASX on 22 April 2025.
•
Mrima Hill is a globally strategic rare earth and niobium project (also prospective for manganese and
phosphate), for which RareX has assembled a team of Australian and U.S. expert institutions and
financiers, and proposed a procurement, development, and operational plan to the Kenyan government.
•
RareX has embedded socio-environmental priorities into the DNA of the project proposal, recognising
the imperative to deliver on both international and Kenyan expectations for social performance and
environmental stewardship, using local knowledge, local teams, and local companies.
•
WSP and RareX have worked closely on previous projects, particularly Cummins Range in the
environmentally and culturally sensitive Kimberley region of Western Australia, with technical and socioenvironmental learnings that are directly applicable to the Mrima Hill development plan.
RareX Limited (ASX: REE) (RareX or the Company) is pleased to announce it has entered into a formal agreement
with leading global environmental and social advisory firm, WSP, to advance its foundational planning work for
the proposed Mrima Hill Critical Minerals Project in Kenya.
This engagement underscores RareX’s commitment to delivering a project that is grounded in leading
Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) practices while also positioning the Company to move efficiently
once tenure is secured.
Laying the Groundwork – Responsibly and Early
The scope of work proposed to be undertaken by WSP includes:
1. A gap analysis of existing environmental and social data across the Mrima Hill area;
2. Early stakeholder mapping and support for engagement with local communities, leaders, and national
agencies;
3. Identification and onboarding of Kenyan-based partners to support on-the-ground engagement and
fieldwork;
4. Establishment of a project-specific framework for social performance—reflecting both local
expectations and international leading practice; and
5. Scoping of environmental and social baseline studies in preparation for activation once tenure is
secured.
For more information,
please contact:
Investors: James Durrant, Managing Director
Engage and Contribute: Investor Hub
RareX Limited
ASX:REE
ABN: 65 105 578 756
RareX HQ
Level 1, 338 Barker Road
Subiaco WA 6008
Australia
P +61 (0) 8 6383 6593
W ree.investorhub.com/welcome
P +61 (0) 8 6383 6593
E info@rarex.com.au
ree.investorhub.com/welcome
rarex.com.au
RareX Limited (ASX:REE)
@rarex_asx
RareX’s Managing Director, James Durrant, commented:
“This is a project of national significance, and we are approaching it with the respect and readiness it demands.
We know how important this region is — socially, and environmentally — and we’re taking deliberate steps to show
we’re the right long-term partner for Kenya and for Kwale County. At the same time, we recognise the strategic
need to be prepared well ahead of time. This work ensures that once licensing is granted, we are not starting from
zero — we are prepared to advance without delay, and without compromise.
“WSP is one of the world’s leading ESG consultants, with deep experience supporting projects in complex and
sensitive jurisdictions. Their global reach and ability to integrate project delivery with Kenyan partners will be key to
aligning our approach with community expectations and international leading practice.”
Strategic Implications
This engagement represents the prioritization of RareX’s proposed scope of works for Mrima Hill. It reinforces
the following key aspects of the proposal, that:
•
RareX is building its program for leading environmental and social performance well ahead of access to
ground—demonstrating its commitment to good practice from the outset;
•
ESG performance is not secondary, but foundational to how RareX intends to operate;
•
International standards are being applied with local collaboration and in a project-specific context.
•
The Company is ready and has the necessary capacity and capability as a disciplined Australian operator
committed to ethical and responsible development.
The Mrima Hill proposal outlines a phased and sovereign-aligned development pathway for rare earths, niobium,
phosphate, and manganese. RareX will continue to update the market as ESG preparations and other predevelopment work progresses.
This announcement has been authorised for release by the Board of RareX Limited.
RareX is a critical minerals company specialising in rare earths and niobium in hard rock carbonatites.
The exploration focus of the business is on the new Khaleesi Project in the East Yilgarn which is a district-scale,
elevated-niobium, alkaline intrusive complex, the Mt Mansbridge xenotime heavy rare earths project near Browns
Range and the Cummins Range near-mine anomalies.
The Company’s engineering and commercial focus is on the mid-study-level, Cummins Range Project (+$330M
NPV8 post-tax*) - a carbonatite hosted rare earths, gallium, scandium and phosphate project, containing a critical
metal suite including magnet grade rare earths and battery grade phosphates and technically Australia’s largest
undeveloped rare earths project.
RareX have been curating a portfolio of carbonatite related projects including the newly acquired bulls-eye Piper
Project along trend from both Nolans Bore and the Luni niobium deposit. RareX will continue to develop and
optimise its portfolio.
RareX maintains material investments in Kincora Copper (ASX:KCC), Cosmos Exploration (ASX:C1X) and Canada
Rare Earth Corporation (LL.V).
For further information on the Company and its projects visit www.rarex.com.au
* The forecast financial information was released on 22 August 2023. The Company confirms that the material assumptions underpinning the
production target and forecast financial information continue to apply and have not materially changed
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