Syerston Scandium Project Moves Forward: Sunrise Secures AU$46 Million for Development Phase

Sunrise Energy Metals has successfully attracted AU$45.6 million in fresh capital to accelerate development activities at its flagship Syerston scandium operation in New South Wales. The capital injection comes through a placement of 10.7 million ordinary shares priced at AU$4.25 per share, with investors also granted unlisted options on a one-for-one basis exercisable at the same price over a two-year period.

Strategic Backing and Supply Security Focus

This funding milestone follows Sunrise’s earlier success in securing conditional support from the US Export-Import Bank for up to AU$103 million—sufficient to cover approximately half of the project’s anticipated development expenses. Managing Director Sam Riggall emphasized the significance of this financial package for the company’s timeline and operational readiness.

“The combination of today’s placement proceeds and the EXIM conditional funding commitment of up to US$67 million positions us to establish a robust financing framework for moving the Syerston Project forward,” Riggall stated in the company announcement. “At this critical juncture where scandium supply chains face considerable uncertainty, we are well-positioned to deliver a new independent source of this critical mineral,” he added.

Robert Friedland, co-chair of Sunrise and a prominent figure in mining finance, has underscored the geopolitical importance of the project to US interests in securing reliable critical mineral supplies amid shifting global trade patterns.

Pre-Construction Acceleration and Operational Timeline

Capital deployment will focus on advancing several pre-construction workstreams at the Syerston site. These include detailed engineering studies, infrastructure connectivity assessments for water and power, supplementary drilling activities to refine mine planning parameters, and early equipment procurement to mitigate supply chain delays on long lead time items.

The Syerston deposit, situated approximately 450 kilometers west of Sydney, contains 46 million tonnes of measured and indicated mineral resources at an average grade of 414 parts per million scandium—translating to over 19,000 tonnes of in-situ scandium metal. The company’s feasibility studies indicate annual production capacity of around 60 tonnes of scandium over a projected 32-year operational lifespan, with construction and commissioning expected to require up to two years.

This funding round represents a decisive step toward establishing what would become a primary scandium production facility in the Western world, addressing supply vulnerabilities in a metal increasingly critical to advanced aerospace and defense applications.