Critical Metals soars on project upgrades, US-Greenland talks

[Ben Graham]

Critical Metals (Nasdaq: CRML) soared to its highest in nearly three months following further upgrades to its rare earth project in southern Greenland and amid renewed US pressure to “take over” the Danish territory.

Earlier this week, the company announced it will acquire a fully integrated, mobile assay laboratory to supplement its Tanbreez project — host to one of the world’s largest deposits of rare earth minerals.

CEO Tony Sage calls the acquisition a “transformative milestone” for Critical Metals as it advances the Tanbreez project from exploration into pre-mining pilot operations. It follows the company’s recent decision to build an Arctic-grade storage and pilot facility in Qaqortoq that is expected to be completed mid-2026.

The mobile laboratory, developed by mining solutions provider Bromet, is designed to deliver real-time, on-site geochemical data directly at the mine site. It is intended to support the company’s proof-of-concept pilot plant by enabling rapid, laboratory-grade elemental analysis of samples derived from drill core and pilot plant material, Critical Metals said.

For the acquisition, it is expected to pay Bromet roughly $1 million.

“Having the capability to perform laboratory-grade geochemical analysis directly at site is expected to significantly accelerate our data collection, sharpen real-time decision-making, and strengthen our assessment of Tanbreez’s exceptional resource potential and long-term scalability,” Sage said.

In addition to the acquisition, Sage also highlighted on social media the potential logistics improvements following the imminent opening of an international airport located 12 km from the Tanbreez site.

Fast-track to production

The planned upgrades form part of Critical Metals’ strategy of using a modular, turnkey approach to advance the Tanbreez project and fast-track it into production as early as this year.

According to a preliminary economic assessment from last year, the phased growth strategy for Tanbreez outlined an initial production of around 85,000 tonnes of rare earth oxides per annum, then scaled to 425,000 tonnes after modular expansion. Mining would occur from a deposit holding at least least 45 million tonnes in resources within a massive kakortokite unit that remains largely underexplored to date.

Based on the estimated resource, the PEA gave the project a net present value (NPV) of approximately $3 billion (approximately $2.8 billion to $3.6 billion at discount rates of 15% and 12.5%, respectively, before tax), with an internal rate of return (IRR) of 180%.

US desire for Greenland

The Tanbreez project signifies Greenland’s vast endowment of untapped mineral resources, which have become the forefront of geopolitical tensions since last year. Analysts view this as one of the reasons for the US government’s aggressive attempts to “buy” the Arctic island despite its public denial.

Trump’s Greenland talk brings opportunity, unease for business

On Wednesday, President Donald Trump ramped up the pressure by reiterating his desire to control Greenland on Truth Social, stating that it is “vital” for the US national defense system. On the same day, a meeting took place in the White House involving Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and the Danish and Greenlandic foreign ministers on the subject.

Shares of Critical Metals rocketed as much as 35% in New York on the latest developments. At about $18 a share, the company is trading near its highest since mid-October, with a market capitalization of $2.1 billion.