RE: The first duty of any BOD is to the Company,4 Dec 2025 21:10
1) TREO grade — is ~3.04% “low”?
Pensana’s reported ore reserve grade for Longonjo is 3.04% TREO (JORC ore reserve ~21.5 Mt at 3.04% TREO).
Comparison: Mt Weld (Lynas) and Mountain Pass (MP Materials) are higher-grade deposits. Mt Weld reserves/resources are reported around ~4–6% TREO (Mt Weld ore reserve 6.4% TREO; resource ~4.12% TREO update 2024) and Mountain Pass averages ~~6% TREO (life-of-mine figure). So Pensana’s 3.04% is lower than those leaders — but not “tiny”.
Takeaway: Calling 3.04% “low” is reasonable relative to Mt Weld/Mountain Pass, but it’s not an abnormal grade in the global rare-earth space (many deposits are much lower).
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2) NdPr ratio ~20% — true
Pensana’s ore-reserve numbers show 0.65% NdPr within 3.04% TREO reserves, which gives an NdPr / TREO ≈ 0.65 / 3.04 = 21.4% (i.e. ~20%). The company also highlights high NdPr zones (locally up to much higher).
Takeaway: The ~20% NdPr figure is accurate as an average for Longonjo reserves.
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3) “Virtually non-existent” Dy/Tb — not correct (but they’re lower than some rivals)
Longonjo historically had lower heavy-rare-earth (HREE: Dy, Tb) content compared with the highest-HREE deposits, but it does contain HREEs and Pensana has recently announced a study showing scope to increase HREE recovery ~fivefold (to ~160 tpa HREO including ~130 tpa Dy₂O₃ and ~30 tpa Tb₄O₇ in an upgraded MREC product). So the “virtually none” claim is no longer fully accurate given the metallurgical work/flowsheet changes.
Takeaway: Dy/Tb are not absent — they were lower historically, but recent testing shows potential to materially increase their recoveries and contribution to revenue.
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4) High thorium — nuance needed
Pensana’s ESIA/technical reports state uranium is low but thorium values are higher relative to some global deposits — i.e. thorium is a recognized, manageable radiological consideration at Longonjo and is covered in their ESIA. That doesn’t automatically make the project uneconomic, but it does impose additional environmental, handling and regulatory controls (and possible disposal/treatment costs).
Takeaway: There is measurable thorium and Pensana acknowledges it; it’s not necessarily fatal to the project but it is an extra factor to manage (permits, waste handling, worker safety, possible processing complexity).
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5) Resource size / mine life — “big enough”
Pensana reports ore reserves of ~21.5 Mt at 3.04% TREO (139k t NdPr oxide in reserves) and resource numbers much larger (resources ~138 Mt at ~2.19% TREO). Company states 20+ year mine life. Those are significant numbers, and the company is funding construction.
Takeaway: Resource size is large enough for a long mine life — true.
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6) “Alongside all the ionic clays it has disadvantageous OPEX/CAPEX”
Important: Longonjo is a weathered carbonatite (monazite / bastnaes
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