Aclara Resources

Aclara Resources is a publicly listed Canadian rare-earths company developing a vertically oriented supply chain across Brazil, Chile and the United States. Its business is focused on heavy and magnetic rare-earth elements, particularly dysprosium and terbium, which are important inputs for high-performance permanent magnets used in electric vehicles, wind turbines, defense systems and other advanced technologies. The company is not primarily an established mine operator; it is a project-development and processing company whose assets remain subject to technical, permitting, financing and construction milestones. Aclara traces its corporate origins to BioLantánidos, a Chilean rare-earth venture associated with the Lantanidos investment fund administered by Minería Activa and LarrainVial. Hochschild Mining acquired an initial interest in BioLantánidos in 2018 and obtained an option to increase its ownership. In 2019, Hochschild acquired the remaining shares, giving it full control of the predecessor business. Hochschild subsequently reorganized and rebranded the company as Aclara Resources, and Aclara became publicly listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange in 2021. The company’s Chilean business is centered on the Penco Module near Penco in the Biobío Region. The project is designed to recover rare-earth elements from ionic adsorption clays, a type of deposit that can be treated through comparatively low-intensity leaching rather than conventional hard-rock mining and crushing. Aclara has proposed a development model intended to limit waste and avoid certain hazardous reagents commonly associated with rare-earth processing. The Penco project’s environmental assessment remained under review in the supplied reference material, and any commercial production schedule therefore depends on regulatory approval and subsequent construction. Aclara has expanded beyond Chile through its Carina project in Goiás, Brazil. The Brazilian project is intended to produce mixed rare-earth oxides, including magnetic rare-earth products, for downstream conversion and magnet manufacturing in the United States. In November 2025, the company described Carina as the first heavy rare-earth mining project to declare reserves hosted in ionic clays, although the project remains a development-stage asset rather than a mature operating mine. In the United States, Aclara is developing a rare-earth separation facility at the Port of Vinton in Louisiana. The planned plant is intended to process feedstock from the company’s Latin American projects and support a North American supply chain for separated rare-earth products. The company has also worked with Virginia Tech on processing technology. In 2025, Aclara stated an expectation that its planned projects could supply more than 75% of U.S. dysprosium and terbium demand by 2028; this is a corporate projection rather than established production. Aclara’s positioning combines mineral-resource development with proprietary or co-developed processing technology. Its commercial prospects depend on resource definition, environmental approvals, community and stakeholder relations, successful scale-up of its extraction and separation processes, project financing, construction execution and rare-earth prices. The company’s ownership structure and strategic direction remain closely linked to Hochschild Mining, while CAP is another major shareholder.

Aclara Resources developed from BioLantánidos, a Chilean rare-earth venture established to examine the commercial potential of ionic adsorption clay resources near Penco in the Biobío Region. BioLantánidos began its work in 2016 and was associated with the Lantanidos fund administered by Minería Activa and LarrainVial. The project’s geological setting and proposed extraction route distinguished it from conventional hard-rock rare-earth operations: the target mineralization occurs in relatively shallow clay horizons and can potentially be recovered through leaching without the same degree of drilling, blasting, crushing and tailings generation required by many hard-rock deposits. Hochschild Mining entered the business in 2018 by purchasing a 6.2% interest in BioLantánidos. The transaction also gave Hochschild an option to acquire additional ownership. In 2019, Hochschild exercised its position by acquiring the remaining 93.8% interest, thereby taking full control of the Chilean rare-earth venture. The business was later reorganized and renamed Aclara Resources. In 2021, Aclara was listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange, transforming the project from a private subsidiary into a separately traded rare-earths company while retaining Hochschild as its principal shareholder. Aclara’s strategy subsequently expanded from a single Chilean project into a regional resource and processing platform. In Chile, the Penco Module remained the company’s principal early-stage development project. The proposed operation would extract rare-earth-bearing clays near Penco and produce mixed rare-earth oxides. The company has emphasized a processing approach designed to reduce waste and avoid some hazardous chemicals used in other rare-earth flowsheets. The project has also been subject to environmental review and public scrutiny, making regulatory approval and stakeholder engagement important determinants of its future. In Brazil, Aclara developed the Carina project in Nova Roma, Goiás. The project is aimed at producing magnetic rare-earth oxides, with a particular focus on elements such as dysprosium, terbium, praseodymium and neodymium. In 2025, Aclara described Carina as the first heavy rare-earth project to declare reserves hosted in ionic clays. The claim reflected the company’s attempt to position Brazilian ionic-clay resources as a source of heavy rare earths for Western supply chains, although Carina remained a development-stage project in the supplied material. The company also moved downstream by planning a separation plant at the Port of Vinton in Louisiana. The facility is intended to process rare-earth feedstock from Latin American projects and produce separated materials for customers in North America. Aclara’s technology work has included collaboration with Virginia Tech. This development reflects a broader strategy among North American critical-minerals companies to integrate mining, chemical separation and magnet-related supply chains rather than export unprocessed concentrates. By 2025, Aclara said it expected its planned projects to supply more than 75% of U.S. dysprosium and terbium demand by 2028. That statement was a forward-looking company expectation, not evidence of current output. As of the latest period covered by the supplied references, the company’s principal assets were still progressing through environmental assessment, engineering, financing, construction and process-development stages. Its history therefore remains one of corporate consolidation and project development rather than sustained commercial mining production.

• 2026

  United States separation plant is under construction

  [1]Aclara Resourcesen.wikipedia.org

  A planned rare-earth separation facility at the Port of Vinton in Louisiana was under construction according to the supplied reference material.

• 2025

  Carina declares reserves hosted in ionic clays

  [1]Aclara Resourcesen.wikipedia.org

  Aclara said the Carina project was the first heavy rare-earth mining project to declare reserves hosted in ionic clay deposits.

• 2021

  Aclara Resources is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange

  [1]Aclara Resourcesen.wikipedia.org

  The reorganized and rebranded company became a publicly traded Canadian rare-earths company.

• 2019

  Hochschild takes full ownership of BioLantánidos

  [1]Aclara Resourcesen.wikipedia.org

  Hochschild acquired the remaining 93.8% interest in the Chilean rare-earth company.

• 2018

  Hochschild Mining acquires an initial BioLantánidos stake

  [1]Aclara Resourcesen.wikipedia.org

  Hochschild Mining purchased 6.2% of BioLantánidos and obtained an option for further acquisitions.

• 2016

  BioLantánidos begins development work in Chile

  [1]Aclara Resourcesen.wikipedia.org

  The predecessor business began pursuing rare-earth opportunities near Penco in Chile, focusing on ionic adsorption clay resources.

A project-development and technology-focused rare-earths company targeting heavy and magnetic rare-earth supply from ionic-clay resources in the Americas.

• Rare-earth mining and mixed oxide production

  Penco Module

  The Penco Module is Aclara’s Chilean development project near Penco in the Biobío Region. It targets rare-earth elements contained in ionic adsorption clays and is planned to produce mixed rare-earth oxides. The proposed extraction route is intended to use relatively mild leaching and to limit waste and hazardous chemical use compared with some conventional rare-earth operations. The project’s environmental impact assessment was under review in the supplied reference material, so its production schedule remains contingent on approval, financing and construction.

• Rare-earth mining project

  Carina

  Carina is Aclara’s rare-earth project in Nova Roma, Goiás, Brazil. It is intended to supply magnetic rare-earth oxides, including products containing dysprosium, terbium, praseodymium and neodymium, for downstream processing and magnet manufacturing in the United States. The project is based on ionic-clay resources and was described by Aclara in 2025 as the first heavy rare-earth project to declare reserves hosted in that type of deposit. It remains a development-stage asset.

• Rare-earth processing

  Port of Vinton separation facility

  The planned Port of Vinton facility in Louisiana is designed to separate rare-earth materials supplied by Aclara’s projects in Brazil and Chile. It represents the company’s effort to add downstream processing capacity in the United States rather than exporting only mine-derived material. The facility was reported as under construction in the supplied reference material and is intended to support North American demand for separated heavy and magnetic rare-earth products.

• 2026

  Allegations concerning Chilean wildfires and the Penco approval process

  Aclara faced accusations in Chile that it had started wildfires to facilitate approval of the Penco Module. The supplied reference does not establish that the allegation was proven, nor does it provide a final legal determination.

  Source

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• 2025

  Expansion toward an integrated North American rare-earth supply chainStrategy

  Background

  Aclara sought to connect Latin American ionic-clay resources with processing and magnet-related demand in the United States.

  Action taken

  The company advanced the Carina project in Brazil and planned a separation facility at the Port of Vinton in Louisiana.

  Aftermath

  The strategy increased Aclara’s exposure to downstream processing, construction and regulatory execution in addition to mine development.

  Source

• 2021

  Rebrand and public listing as Aclara ResourcesStrategy

  Background

  Following Hochschild Mining’s consolidation of BioLantánidos, the business was repositioned as a dedicated rare-earths company.

  Action taken

  The company adopted the Aclara Resources name and listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

  Aftermath

  The transaction created a publicly traded platform for advancing rare-earth projects in Chile and later Brazil and the United States.

  Source

1. 1Aclara Resourcesen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Aclara Resources corporate websiteaclara-re.com