Amanda Lacaze Says Lynas Rare Earths Broke Chinese Monopoly
Amanda Lacaze said lynas rare earths broke the Chinese monopoly on separated light rare earths in 2013 and heavy rare earths in 2025. She made the claim in an interview at the company’s rare earth processing plant in Kuantan, Malaysia, as she described 12 years of production and sales.
“We are evidence that with the right assets and the right level of determination, you can actually be successful in this market,” Lacaze said. “we've actually been producing and selling separated rare earths now for 12 years.”
Lynas 2025 expansion
Lacaze green-lighted the Lynas 2025 expansion project in 2019, when the benchmark light rare earth alloy Neodymium-Praseodymium was priced at $35/kg. The project involved a $1.5 billion investment, and the Perth-based company’s value has since risen 30 times over the past decade to $15 billion.
That sequence matters for readers tracking supply-chain exposure because China has long controlled more than 90% of the rare earth supply chain, and politically motivated export controls helped spur state investment in the industry. Lynas’s gains show that long-term capital spending can still produce a commercial foothold in markets shaped by policy, pricing and access to processing.
Department of War price floor
Lynas recently agreed a $110/kg price floor for a four-year offtake agreement for NdPr with the Department of War. The department also agreed to provide $258 million for a Lynas heavy rare earth refinement facility in Seadrift, Texas.
Lynas also inked a 10-year price floor of $110/kg of NdPr with Japan, and Lacaze said the company broke the Chinese monopoly on separated heavy rare earths in 2025. She said, “We broke the Chinese monopoly on separated light rare earths in 2013 and heavy rare earths in 2025.”
June leadership change
Lacaze is stepping down after 12 years as CEO at the end of June. For customers, partners and investors, the practical takeaway is that Lynas has already locked in price support, government backing and overseas processing deals before the leadership transition, so the near-term focus shifts to execution of those agreements rather than the announcement itself.
