Resumen de Chinese bidder snaps up only commercial rare earths mine in US
A Chinese consortium including rare earth producer Shenghe Resources puts in the winning bid at Mountain Pass auction, but the deal will now face regulatory scrutiny.
Chinese-led consortium MP Mine Operations (MPMO) put in the winning bid for the only commercial rare earths mine in the US, but the deal will now have to face scrutiny from regulators, as political opposition to the overseas ownership of rare earth assets grows.
Mountain Pass, a rare earth mine in Southern California, was up on the auction block on 14 June, following the bankruptcy of its owner and former operator Molycorp.
The auction was won by MPMO with a $20.5m bid, beating out the stalking-horse bidder ERP, a venture led by US coal billionaire Tom Clarke.
MPMO is a joint venture of QTT Financial and JHL Capital, two US-based noteholders from the Molycorp bankruptcy, and the Chinese rare earths company Shenghe Resources.
Shenghe, which is participating in the joint venture through the holding company Resources International Trading Singapore, is part-owned by the Chinese government, as well as regional state institutions in its home region of Szechuan.
