Critical Metals (Nasdaq: CRML) says a preliminary economic assessment (PEA) on its Tanbreez project in Greenland, one of the largest rare earth deposits in the world, values it at around $3 billion (C$4.3 billion).

Tanbreez has an after-tax net present value (NPV) of about $2.1 billion to $2.7 billion at discount rates of 15% and 12.5%, respectively, according to the PEA released on Monday. It shows an internal rate of return (IRR) of about 180%.

Buoyed by macroeconomic tailwinds and global policy initiatives, including a recent U.S. executive order to tap the Department of Defense to expand the production of rare earths, Tanbreez could play an essential role in supporting an integrated Western supply chain. The coastal site has deep-water fjord access and sits near existing infrastructure.

“The release of the PEA for Tanbreez confirms the exceptional economic credentials of the project and fast tracks the development strategy for this game-changing rare earth deposit,” Critical Metals CEO Tony Sage said in a news release.

Critical Metals said it expects to conduct additional drilling campaigns and to complete a definitive feasibility study of the project by the end of 2025.

The NPV was calculated from a 2016 mineral resource estimate of 44.9 million tonnes of rare earth materials – including 25.4 million tonnes of indicated resources and 19.5 million tonnes of indicated resources. That’s about 1% of the 4.7-billion tonne mineralized kakortokite host rock.

In March, Critical Metals released its technical report on Tanbreez in compliance with United States regulation S-K 1300.

Highlights

The PEA outlines a staged growth strategy, with initial production of about 85,000 tonnes per annum (tpa) rare earth oxides; scalable to about 425,000 tpa with modular expansion.

The resource base of 45 million tonnes at 0.4% total rare earth oxides with 27% heavy rare earth elements (dysprosium, terbium, yttrium); open laterally and at depth.

The mining license was granted through to 2050 due to low radioactivity mineralization and an ESG-aligned development path, the company said.

Tranbreez is one of the few Western-aligned sources of heavy rare earth elements and is a potential supply partner for U.S./European Union critical materials strategy. It is also positioned as a long-term supplier to U.S./EU critical mineral and defense sectors.

The PEA can be viewed here.

Critical Metals stock fell about 4% to $1.34 in morning trading Tuesday on the Nasdaq in New York. The company has a $126 million market capitalization.