- Round Top project contains 13 of the 35 “critical minerals” deemed “critical to U.S. national security and the economy” by the Department of the Interior
- The U.S. is 100% dependent on foreign sources for 7 of the 13 “critical minerals” contained in the Round Top project
SIERRA BLANCA, TX, May 30, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Texas Mineral Resources Corp. (OTCQB: TMRC) an exploration company targeting the heavy rare earths and a variety of other high-value elements and industrial minerals, is pleased to announce the Round Top project, located seventy miles southeast of El Paso, contains 13 of the 35 minerals deemed “critical” by the Department of the Interior in its final report dated May 18, 2018: https://www.usgs.gov/news/interior-releases-2018-s-final-list-35-minerals-deemed-critical-us-national-security-and
At full production, the Round Top project would potentially produce commercial quantities of the following thirteen “critical minerals”:
· Rare Earths (Round Top project contains 82% heavy rare earths)
· Lithium
· Beryllium
· Scandium
· Uranium
· Cesium
· Gallium
· Hafnium
· Magnesium
· Manganese
· Rubidium
· Strontium
· Zirconium
Under President Trump’s Executive Order of December 2017, the Commerce Department will now organize an interagency response by August 18, 2018 in a report due to the President which will include, among other things:
- A strategy to reduce the U.S. reliance on “critical minerals”
- Ways to increase discovery, production and domestic refining of “critical minerals”
- Recommendations to streamline lease permitting and review processes
“It is no coincidence that TMRC has seen a heightened interest in its Round Top project since President Trump’s Executive Order,” commented Dan Gorski, CEO. “We are in discussions with parties who have an interest both in the Round Top project as well as our American Mineral Reclamation subsidiary. As a result, we have chosen not to extend the MOU signed in November 2017 with an investor group and which recently expired.”
“The formulation of a critical minerals list is a welcome development,” said Anthony Marchese, Chairman of TMRC. “The question now is whether government policy will move from awareness to action. If mineral development becomes a true priority, private markets will respond.”
In the past 3 years, TMRC has been part of teams selected for two U.S. Government grants, one from the Department of Defense and the other from the Department of Energy (DoE). TMRC’s successful demonstration project for the U.S. Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) focused on the high-purity processing of specific high-value rare earths – included in the new Critical Minerals List. TMRC is currently part of a team working on a DoE grant to extract REEs from coal overburden.
About Texas Mineral Resources Corp.
Texas Mineral Resources Corp.'s primary focus is exploring and, if warranted, developing its Round Top heavy rare earth and industrial minerals project located in Hudspeth County, Texas, 85 miles east of El Paso. The Company’s common stock trades on the OTCQB U.S. tier under the symbol “TMRC.”
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, including, but not limited to, statements recovery rates of “critical materials” from the Round Top leach solution being indicative of production potential, potential development and production of “critical materials” at Round Top, potential production rates and mining costs, potential revenue streams from such production, anticipated production methods and results, anticipated mine life at Round Top, potential production of “critical material” de-risking project economics, Round Top being a stable, long-term supply of “critical materials”, projected increased demand in the “critical materials” market and other similar statements. When used in this press release, the words "potential," "indicate," "expect," "intend," "hopes," "believe," "may," "will," "if, "anticipate," and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such statements. Such factors include, among others, risks related to the development of the Round Top project, up-scaling of extraction testing, risks related to changes in future operating costs and working capital balance, risks related to mining results not matching preliminary tests and risks related to the ability of TMRC to raise adequate working capital and continue as a going concern, as well as those factors discussed under the heading "Risk Factors" in the Company's latest annual report on Form 10-K, as filed on November 30, 2017, and other documents filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Except as required by law, the Company assumes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements.