Neo Performance Materials Signs Memorandum of Understanding with Rainbow Rare Earths

06:33 AM EDT, 09/24/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Neo Performance Materials (NEO.TO) has signed a memorandum of understanding with Rainbow Rare Earths Limited on the Phalaborwa rare earth project in South Africa, the company said Thursday. The MOU covers technical support for and offtake from the project, where Rainbow plans to recover rare earth elements from legacy phosphogypsum residue, a by-product of fertilizer production. Rainbow would provide Neo with offtake rights to 40% of the project's annual production of separated NdPr oxide and 65% of its annual mixed samarium-europium-gadolinium and heavy rare earth carbonate. Meanwhile, Neo will provide Rainbow with design input and technical support for the final solvent extraction separation circuit to achieve the project's intended product mix and purity. Following technical due diligence, Neo has determined that the project is a promising secondary source of magnetic rare earths, adding a new supply source to its raw material supply chain.