Globe Metals shares up on rare earth find

Shares in Africa-focused Globe Metals and Mining shot up on Monday after it released positive rare earth exploration results.

Chinese state-owned firm East China Minerals Exploration and Development Bureau last month became the largest shareholder in Globe when it bought a 53.7 per cent stake.

Globe said in a statement on Monday that a rock-chip and soil sampling program at Mount Muambe, Mozambique, had found at least five zones of significant rare earth mineralisation (REE).

This included light rare earth oxide enriched fenite and carbonatite and heavy rare earth oxide enriched fenite and enriched agglomerate.

The company’s shares closed up 2¢, or 8.16 per cent, at 26.5¢.

There are fears about a looming global shortage of rare earths, which are used by hi-tech companies with civil and military uses including in aerospace components, lasers and x-ray machines.

“The orientation program has revealed an exciting, large, diverse and complex REE and fluorite mineralised system,” the company statement said.

“The south-eastern half of the complex has seen virtually no work to date. The company therefore considers it highly likely that further significant zones of REE and fluorite mineralisation will

be discovered and defined as the exploration programs progress.”

China controls 97 per cent of the world’s supply but has been criticised by the US recently for cutting export quotas of the metals.

In 2009 the Australian Foreign Investment Review Board blocked a $252 million bid by state-owned China Nonferrous Metal Mining to acquire Australian rare earth miner Lynas.