US-based rare earths producer MP Materials increased neodymium-praseodymium (NdPr) oxide production and sales volume in the third quarter.
MP produced 478t of NdPr oxide in July-September, up by around 76pc from the 272t produced in the second quarter. The company also increased its sales volumes to 404t, up from 136t in April-June although the average realised prices for these sales fell to $47/kg from $48/kg.
Looking further upstream, the company's rare earth oxide (REO) production rose to 13,742t in July-September up from a total of 9,084t in the previous quarter. MP also sold 9,729t of REO, up from 5,839t in April-June.
Oversupply and sluggish demand have weighed on NdPr prices for much of this year, but prices rallied through August and early September driven by tighter oxide supply in China and firmer demand. Argus' fob China assessment for 99pc NdPr oxide averaged around $54,582/t in the third quarter, up from the second-quarter average of $53,053/t.
