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or Name
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CA



Commerce Resources Corp (2)
Symbol CCE
Shares Issued 91,654,630
Close 2022-07-14 C$ 0.17
Market Cap C$ 15,581,287
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Commerce Resources ships 24.2% NdPr to REE producer

2022-07-15 09:12 ET - News Release

Mr. Chris Grove reports

COMMERCE RESOURCES SHIPS FIRST MIXED REC SAMPLE - 24.2% NDPR - TO MAJOR RARE EARTH PRODUCER

Commerce Resources Corp. has completed its first shipment of a mixed rare earth carbonate (REC) concentrate sample to a major global producer of rare earth elements (REEs) for evaluation. The sample (gram quantities) meets typical market specifications and was produced as part of the company's continuing scale-up to larger kilogram quantities.

The sample follows the initial gram quantities of mixed REC sample produced by the company, announced March 23, 2022. The company is pleased to report the new sample has a neodymium (Nd) plus praseodymium (Pr) distribution -- that is, per cent of Nd plus Pr oxide of the total rare earth oxide (REO) -- of 24.2 per cent, which is significantly higher than that reported by several major global producers, and that of the previous samples produced (21.6 per cent and 22.4 per cent NdPr). Additionally, the mixed REC sample grades 53.9 per cent REO, with one part per million thorium, and less than 0.1 ppm uranium.

The company has now produced several bench-scale samples of mixed REC concentrates to market specifications, with NdPr distributions ranging from 21.6 per cent to 24.2 per cent. The strong NdPr distributions that characterize these Ashram samples rank among the highest in the world for non-cerium depleted mixed REC concentrate and exceeds that of several major global producers. These samples were produced with the company's conventional flowsheet developed at Hazen Research, Colorado, in which several process operations have been demonstrated at a continuous pilot-scale level. The company is now undergoing a process scale-up to kilogram quantities of mixed REC concentrate to deliver to additional third party processors per their request.

The mixed REC sample recently delivered to the third party producer was produced from the Ashram rare earth and fluorspar deposit using a conventional recovery flowsheet, which results in high-grade monazite concentrate exceeding 40 per cent REO. The monazite concentrate was processed through a sulphuric acid pot digestion, to crack the monazite, which was then followed by a water leach to liberate the individual REEs into solution at high recovery (98 per cent for NdPr in the sulphuric acid plus water leach stage -- see news release dated Sept. 9, 2021). The thorium was then selectively removed using solvent extraction and the REEs subsequently isolated -- also using solvent extraction -- and precipitated as a mixed REC concentrate, meeting typical market specifications.

In the rare earth industry, a mixed REC concentrate is typically viewed as the initial marketable product in the REE value chain. A mixed REC is readily saleable as it is the most common feedstock to REE solvent extraction facilities globally, which separate the individual REEs and allow for them to be individually refined into marketable products and disseminated throughout downstream value chains.

About the Ashram deposit

The Ashram deposit ranks as one of the largest REE (and fluorspar) deposits globally, consisting of a monazite-dominated, single mineralized body outcropping at surface, and has a footprint approximately 600 metres along strike, over 300 m across and 600 m deep, remaining open in several directions. The deposit hosts a measured resource of 1.6 million tonnes at 1.77 per cent rare earth oxide (REO) and 3.8 per cent F, an indicated resource of 27.7 million tonnes at 1.90 per cent REO and 2.9 per cent F, and an inferred resource of 219.8 million tonnes at 1.88 per cent REO and 2.2 per cent F, at a cut-off grade of 1.25 per cent REO (effective date July 5, 2012). Note: mineral resources are not mineral reserves as they do not have demonstrated economic viability. There is no certainty that all or any part of the mineral resources will be converted into mineral reserves.

National Instrument 43-101 disclosure

Darren L. Smith, MSc, PGeo, Dahrouge Geological Consulting Ltd., a permit holder with the Ordre des Geologues du Quebec and qualified person as defined in National Instrument 43-101 -- Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects, supervised the preparation of the technical information in this news release.

About Commerce Resources Corp.

Commerce Resources is a junior mineral resource company focused on the development of the Ashram rare earth and fluorspar deposit located in Quebec, Canada. The company is positioning to be one of the lowest-cost rare earth producers globally, with a specific focus on being a long-term supplier of mixed rare earth carbonate and/or NdPr oxide to the global market. The Ashram deposit is characterized by simple rare earth (monazite, bastnaesite, xenotime) and gangue (carbonates) mineralogy, a large-tonnage resource at favourable grade, and has demonstrated the production of high-grade (greater than 45 per cent REO) mineral concentrates at high recovery (greater than 70 per cent) in line with active global producers. In addition to being one of the largest rare earth deposits globally, Ashram is also one of the largest fluorspar deposits globally and has the potential to be a long-term supplier to the met-spar and acid-spar markets.

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