Portuguese 
English 
Spanish 
3 min of reading 
7 comments 
The Mining Company Meteoric Resources Announced a Billion-Dollar Investment in a MegaProject in Caldas-MG. The MegaProject Promises to Transform Brazil into One of the Leaders in Rare Earth Exploration, Essential Resources for Cutting-Edge Technologies
Minas Gerais is emerging in the race for the “21st Century Gold”, as rare earths have been called, with three major projects totaling R$ 4.6 billion. The main MegaProject is that of the mining company Meteoric Resources, which will receive an investment of R$ 1 billion in Caldas-MG, where Viridis also plans another project of R$ 1.2 billion. Other investments include R$ 2.4 billion from Brazilian Terra Brasil and R$ 800 million from Mineração Serra Verde.
Everything About the Investment in the Rare Earth MegaProject in Brazilian Soil
According to Marcelo Carvalho, executive director of mining company Meteoric Resources, at a seminar at the end of October 2023, Brazil has the potential to meet 10% to 15% of the global rare earth market in the next ten years.
The mining company announced investments of R$ 1 billion over three years in the MegaProject in Caldas-MG and will have as a neighbor the also Australian Viridis Mining and Minerals, which has just purchased research and exploration rights for the city.
-
Australian mining company buys rare earths project in Minas Gerais and bets on billion-dollar potential with niobium in a strategic region of Brazil
-
Mining enters a new era with intelligent machinery that combines operational efficiency, advanced safety, and sustainability in a sector increasingly pressured by productivity and environmental responsibility.
-
Trump breaks a 20-year environmental barrier and puts copper and nickel mining back at the doorstep of the Boundary Waters, one of the most sensitive natural areas in the U.S., reigniting the clash between critical minerals, clean water, and the risk of irreversible damage in northern Minnesota.
-
Brazil has 90% of the world’s production of a fundamental rare metal, used in airplanes, batteries, electric cars, and high-strength steel, but why isn’t the country getting rich from it?
The announcement of the implementation of the company Meteoric was made in August of last year by Governor Romeu Zema, with the presence of Mayor Sérgio Azevedo, company directors, and representatives of the Australian government.
The exploration of rare earths in Brazil is expected to be more profitable than in China, the world leader in this type of mining. According to information from O Globo, the expectation is to extract 2.5 to 3 kg of rare earths per ton of clay, while in China, this ratio is 800g to 1 kg per ton of clay.
MegaProject in Caldas-MG Will Create Thousands of New Jobs
The clay from which the minerals are extracted is called ionic clay, in soils where, millions of years ago, volcanoes existed, like in Caldas-MG. In the city, besides rare earths, another legacy is the sulfuros waters, which attract tourists from all over the country for various medicinal and aesthetic treatments.
Brazil has the potential to meet 10% to 15% of global demand in the next ten years. The article from O Globo also highlights the statement of the municipal secretary of Economic Development and Labor, Franco Martins, who predicts a 50% increase in the municipality’s revenue in the next ten years and also the arrival of new companies in the region.
As mentioned earlier, the investment by Meteoric Resources in the MegaProject will be R$ 1.18 billion in the ionic clay extraction project. The expectation is to generate 700 jobs, and the investment includes, according to company information, 51 mining processes, and the company is expected to start extracting ionic clay in 2027. According to the Minas government, the company is still in the initial phases of studies and surveys in the area and hopes to begin operations at the production plant by 2026.
O progresso chegando este projeto gera renda para população e muito imposto acelera o turismo
Que grande entreguismo. Que absurdo. É muita exploração e de forma predatória e criminosa. Que danos a nossa natureza, a ecologia.
Daqui uns anos Minas Gerais terá um novo nome: Minas Não Mais.
Maravilha, primeiro sai a noticia que a Austrália encontrou em seu próprio solo a maior reserva de ferro do mundo..meses depois um investidor australiano que investir 1 bilhão no Brasil..nos poupe de mais uma exploração com o aval do governo onde nossas terras serão usurpadas, a riqueza será exportada a preço de ****, conte-nos uma novidade?