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Metals & Mining > Rare Earths & Battery Metals Practice

Rare Earths & Battery Metals Practice

Umbrex connects companies in rare earths & battery metals to independent consultants with deep experience in the industry.

Over 90% of our Rare Earths & Battery Metals Practice consultants are alums of McKinsey, Bain, or BCG.

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Prefer email? Write to [email protected]

Client Segments Umbrex Serves

  • Critical Mineral Miners & Project Developers: Producers/developers of lithium, nickel, cobalt, manganese, natural graphite, and rare earths advancing exploration, permitting, financing, and construction; excluding base/precious-only miners.
  • Midstream Chemical Refiners & Converters: Processors producing battery-grade lithium chemicals, nickel/cobalt/manganese sulfates, graphite AAM purification, and rare-earth separation/metal/alloy; optimizing yield, ESG, localization, and offtake contracts.
  • Cathode & Anode Active Materials Producers: Manufacturers of P‑CAM/CAM (LFP, NMC) and synthetic/natural graphite anode materials scaling qualification, tech partnerships, capacity, and customer contracts; excluding battery cell assembly.
  • Rare Earth Metals, Alloys & Magnet Makers: Producers of Nd/Pr metals, NdFeB/SmCo alloys and magnets industrializing supply security, recycling feedstocks, localization, and OEM partnerships across EVs, wind, and electronics.
  • Strategic Offtakers & Energy/Auto OEMs: Automakers, battery cell/pack and stationary storage OEMs securing critical-mineral supply via offtakes, JVs, localization, and transparency; excluding metal traders or scrap recyclers.

Selected Capabilities of our Rare Earths & Battery Metals Practice

Strategy & Corporate Development

  • Corporate Growth Strategy For Critical Minerals: Define commodity focus, upstream‑midstream‑downstream plays, target geographies, entry modes; quantify NPV, risk, and sequencing to build competitive rare earths and battery metals positions.
  • Market Outlook And Scenario Planning: Build demand‑supply, price, and policy scenarios for lithium, nickel, cobalt, manganese, rare earth oxides and magnets; inform capacity timing, market entry, and capital commitments.
  • M&A Screening And Due Diligence For Critical Minerals: Screen targets and technologies; run commercial, technical, ESG, and jurisdictional diligence for mines, refineries, conversion, magnet or cathode assets; inform valuation and deal terms.
  • Partnership And Consortium Strategy: Design joint ventures and consortiums with OEMs, cathode, magnet, and chemical partners; align technology access, equity, governance, and offtake frameworks to accelerate bankability and access.
  • Localization And Incentives Strategy: Optimize siting and localization to qualify under Inflation Reduction Act and EU Critical Raw Materials Act; secure 45X, 48C, Department of Energy loans, IPCEI funding.

Operations

  • Brine Field And Pond Operations Optimization: Optimize wellfields, pumping, pond sequencing, evaporation, and direct lithium extraction integration to raise concentration, cut precipitation losses and weather risk, and improve recovery and throughput.
  • Spodumene Concentrator And Conversion Optimization: Tune crushing, grinding, dense media separation, flotation, calcination, conversion to lithium hydroxide or carbonate to lift recovery, cut reagents and energy, meet battery-grade specifications.
  • HPAL And Nickel Cobalt Refinery Debottlenecking: Optimize autoclave utilization, slurry rheology, acid balance, neutralization, solvent extraction, and crystallization to raise throughput and recovery, reduce acid consumption, downtime, and variability.
  • Rare Earth Separation And Purification Optimization: Optimize cracking, leaching, solvent extraction trains, precipitation, and calcination to improve neodymium‑praseodymium (NdPr) yield, impurity control, and product consistency to magnet-grade specifications.
  • Graphite Anode Processing And Yield Improvement: Optimize shaping, spheronization, classification, purification, coating, and sintering to improve first-pass yield, tap density, and particle size distribution while reducing energy and rework.

Supply Chain

  • Network Design And Footprint Optimization: Design network spanning mine, concentrator, refinery, conversion, and downstream hubs; optimize lanes and buffers; reduce cost, lead time, CO2e, and geopolitical exposure; increase resilience.
  • Sales And Operations Planning: Implement S&OP and Integrated Business Planning aligning offtake, production, quality, logistics, inventory; improve plan adherence, service levels, and throughput across lithium, nickel, cobalt, rare earths.
  • Logistics And Dangerous Goods Operations: Optimize end-to-end logistics for lithium hydroxide, nickel sulphate, cobalt sulphate, acids, reagents; engineer packaging, route, port, customs; reduce delays, demurrage, damage, freight cost.
  • Inventory And Working Capital Optimization: Optimize safety stocks and multi-echelon buffers for concentrates, intermediates, reagents, finished goods; deploy vendor-managed inventory (VMI) and consignment; cut stockouts, obsolescence, and working capital.
  • Traceability And Chain Of Custody Enablement: Implement traceability and chain of custody with mass balance and digital product passports; enable EU Battery Regulation carbon reporting; assure provenance and customer qualification.

Procurement & Strategic Sourcing

  • Category Strategy And Strategic Sourcing: Build category strategies and run RFx/e‑auctions for sulfuric acid, caustic, extractants, resins, filter media; negotiate indexation and Incoterms; cut total cost and supply risk.
  • Long-Lead Equipment Procurement And Expediting: Source autoclaves, kilns, crystallizers, ion exchange columns; qualify Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs); negotiate liquidated damages; manage inspections and expediting; de-risk lead times and installed cost.
  • Supplier Risk And Resilience Management: Map supplier risk across China, Southeast Asia, and domestic sources; implement dual sourcing, capacity reservations, and safety stocks; reduce geopolitical, sanctions, and force majeure exposure.
  • Should-Cost Modeling And Clean-Sheet Negotiation: Build should-cost and clean-sheet models for reagents, equipment, and services; benchmark inputs and logistics; negotiate price formulae and indexation; deliver sustained cost savings.
  • Supplier Relationship Management And Development: Install Supplier Relationship Management (SRM) with scorecards, quarterly reviews, joint improvement charters, and supplier development; lift on-time delivery, quality, innovation, and supply assurance.

Organization

  • Integrated Operating Model And Governance: Design operating model across rare earths and battery metals mine, concentrator, refinery, conversion, offtake; clarify decision rights and centers of excellence; increase speed and accountability.
  • Joint Venture And Partnership Governance: Set joint venture governance with OEM, cathode, magnet partners—reserved matters, intellectual property (IP) safeguards, technology transfer, offtake alignment; accelerate decisions, protect value, and reduce execution risk.
  • Technical Capability Building And Academy: Build hydrometallurgy capability academies for high-pressure acid leach (HPAL), solvent extraction, crystallization, direct lithium extraction; competency frameworks, certifications, coaching; lift recovery, on-spec product, and stable battery-grade quality.
  • Workforce Planning And Ramp Up: Plan workforce ramp for greenfield and brownfield plants—headcount, skills, shift patterns, localization, recruiting pipelines; cut time-to-startup, turnover, and contractor dependency.
  • Performance Management And Incentive Design: Install KPI trees, tiered huddles, and incentive plans tied to recovery, throughput, yield, battery-grade quality, and safety; strengthen accountability and continuous improvement behaviors.

Pricing

  • Price Architecture And Indexation Design: Define price formulae for lithium hydroxide/carbonate, nickel sulphate, cobalt sulphate, NdPr using Fastmarkets and SMM indices, dual indexation, floors/ceilings; balance risk and margin stability.
  • Value-In-Use And Specification Premiums: Quantify customer value for impurity limits, particle size, tap density, moisture; set premiums, discounts, penalties; improve netbacks, reduce claims, and align to battery-grade requirements.
  • Dynamic Pricing And Quotation Governance: Build quoting rules, approval thresholds, and price corridors by segment and tenor; deploy Configure‑Price‑Quote tools; accelerate cycle time and increase price realization.
  • Surcharge And Cost Pass-Through Mechanisms: Design energy, reagent, freight, and currency surcharges linked to indices and hedges; protect contribution margins during volatility and contract tenors.
  • Deal Analytics And Price Realization Management: Implement pocket margin analytics, price waterfalls, and leakage controls; monitor discounts, rebates, regrades, and off‑spec settlements; lift realized price and mix.

Finance

  • Project Finance And Capital Structuring: Develop lender-ready models, bankable feasibility inputs, debt service coverage ratio (DSCR) and reserve-tail cases; structure debt, mezzanine, royalties/streams, equity; run scenarios and term-sheet negotiations.
  • Driver-Based Planning And Forecasting: Build driver-based planning linking grades, recoveries, reagent and acid consumption, energy, throughput, yields, product mix; scenario prices, premiums, currency; improve forecast accuracy and decisions.
  • Cost Accounting And Margin Analytics: Implement standard and process costing, by-product credits, variance analysis for lithium hydroxide, nickel/cobalt sulphate, NdPr; build margin waterfalls by product and customer; enable profitability management.
  • Treasury, Hedging And Liquidity Management: Set treasury policies; implement cash pooling, liquidity forecasting, covenant monitoring; design hedges for currency, interest, energy, and reagents; reduce earnings volatility and financing cost.
  • Incentives And Tax Credit Monetization: Quantify and monetize Inflation Reduction Act 45X/48C credits; structure transferability and tax equity; implement audit-ready controls to ensure compliance and cash realization.

AI, Data & Analytics

  • Prescriptive Process Control For Hydromet And Conversion: AI prescriptive control for high-pressure acid leach (HPAL), solvent extraction, ion exchange, crystallizers; increase recovery, purity, stability; reduce acid, reagents, energy, variability.
  • Product Quality Prediction And Soft Sensors: Machine learning predicts conformance for lithium hydroxide, nickel sulphate, cobalt sulphate; soft sensors from historian and Laboratory Information Management System data; prevent off-spec and rework.
  • Geometallurgical And Blend Optimization Analytics: Link mineralogy and liberation to process responses; optimize ore blending and setpoints by campaign; raise throughput, recovery, and product consistency; cut reagent and acid consumption.
  • Digital Twin For Brine, Ponds And DLE Operations: Hybrid first-principles and machine learning twin of wellfields, ponds, and direct lithium extraction; optimize pumping, residence, weather risk; protect production, water balance, and inventory.
  • MLOps And Industrial AI Deployment: Establish data pipelines, model governance, drift monitoring, and edge inference integrated with Manufacturing Execution System and control; deliver reliable, cyber-safe AI value at scale.

Transformation

  • Value Capture Office And Benefits Governance: Stand up Value Capture Office governing EBITDA uplift across lithium, nickel, cobalt, rare earths; track recovery, yield, OPEX, capex; enforce cadence, accountability, and benefits realization.
  • Rapid Performance Uplift Waves: Run 12‑week waves in high‑pressure acid leach (HPAL), extraction circuits, crystallization, concentrator, and direct lithium extraction (DLE); cut reagents and energy; lift throughput, recovery, quality.
  • Ramp-Up And Stabilization Program: Accelerate commissioning‑to‑nameplate for lithium hydroxide, nickel sulphate, NdPr; install short‑interval control, defect elimination, control plan adherence; stabilize recovery, purity, availability, and Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE).
  • Zero-Based Cost And Organizational Simplification: Apply zero‑based budgeting and organizational redesign; rationalize activities, spans and layers, shared services; reduce SG&A, indirects, contractor spend, and cash burn while protecting performance.
  • Post-Merger Integration And Synergy Capture: Integrate mines, refineries, and conversion assets; harmonize processes and data; secure offtake continuity; capture synergies without jeopardizing permits and Health, Safety, Environment (HSE).

Innovation

  • Technology Scouting And Roadmapping: Prioritize direct lithium extraction (DLE), HPAL, rare earth separation, novel sorbents and membranes; provide techno‑economic analysis, TRL and IP landscapes to build actionable innovation roadmap.
  • Pilot And Demonstration Scale-Up: Design pilot and demonstration programs with process analytics, design of experiments, sampling plans, and quality gates; de-risk scale-up to commercial plants and accelerate bankability.
  • Open Innovation And Partnership Orchestration: Build consortia with original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), chemical companies, universities, and startups; structure co-development, licensing, grants, and data-sharing to access technologies and speed battery-grade qualification.
  • Product And Application Development: Co-develop battery-grade specifications and applications with cathode, anode, and magnet customers; run sampling and qualification plans; enable premiums through differentiated performance and impurity control.
  • Circularity And Recycling Innovation: Design circular flows for black mass, rare earth magnets, and residues; assess hydromet routes, yields, and economics; pilot recycling to secure sustainable feedstock and regulatory compliance.

Compliance

  • EU Battery Regulation Compliance And Battery Passport: Stand up European Union Battery Regulation compliance—due diligence, carbon footprint declaration, recycled content—and battery passport data model and controls; ensure qualification and market access.
  • Responsible Sourcing And Forced Labor Compliance: Implement responsible sourcing due diligence, attestations, audits, grievance mechanisms for cobalt, nickel, lithium, rare earths; ensure Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act compliance and import clearance.
  • Trade Compliance, Export Controls And Sanctions: Design export control and sanctions compliance—commodity classification, origin, licenses, denied party screening—for rare earth equipment and technology; reduce penalties, seizures, and shipment delays across jurisdictions.
  • Chemical Regulatory Compliance And Product Stewardship: Ensure REACH and Toxic Substances Control Act compliance, GHS labeling and Safety Data Sheets for lithium hydroxide, nickel, cobalt sulphates; prevent rejections and regulatory findings.
  • Dangerous Goods And Hazardous Materials Compliance: Establish dangerous goods compliance—classification, packaging, labeling, training, documentation—for lithium chemicals, acids and reagents under air, sea and road regulations; reduce fines, detentions, and incident risk.

Program & Portfolio Management

  • Enterprise Portfolio Prioritization And Stage-Gate Governance: Prioritize initiatives across mine, concentrator, refinery, conversion, recycling, digital, decarbonization using NPV, risk, CO2e; enforce stage gates and funding decisions; reduce churn and delays.
  • Central Program Management Office And Standards: Stand up enterprise PMO with roles, templates, risk‑issue‑dependency logs, health checks, and cadence; standardize delivery across hydromet and conversion programs; improve predictability and transparency.
  • Cross-Asset Resource And Constraint Planning: Orchestrate shared resources, utilities, campaigns, and outages across plants and pilots; align contractors and labs; resolve constraints; protect throughput while advancing program milestones.
  • Integrated Master Schedule And Dependency Management: Build integrated master schedule linking permitting, engineering, supply chain, offtake, commissioning; surface interdependencies and critical path; improve readiness, schedule adherence, and risk visibility.
  • Benefits Realization And Value Tracking: Define baselines and owners; instrument dashboards tying milestones to recovery, purity, throughput, OEE, CO2e, working capital; assure benefits realization and sustained value.

Information Technology

  • Critical Minerals Enterprise Architecture And Roadmap: Define architecture across ERP, MES, LIMS, DCS/SCADA, historian, maintenance, QMS; sequence modernization and integrations; reduce technical debt and interface failures; enable scalable, compliant digital operations.
  • MES And LIMS Modernization For Hydromet And Conversion: Standardize MES and LIMS for recipes, batches, genealogy, and quality releases; integrate with distributed control systems and ERP; enable battery-grade traceability, rapid disposition, and throughput.
  • OT Cybersecurity And Incident Response: Implement inventory, segmentation, patching, backups, security operations center integration, and incident drills; protect autoclaves, control systems, and programmable controllers; reduce ransomware risk and unplanned shutdowns.
  • ERP Modernization For Critical Minerals: Deploy SAP S/4HANA or Oracle for process manufacturing; manage grades, batches, specs, by-products, and landed cost; integrate order-to-cash and procure-to-pay; improve visibility, compliance, and control.
  • Industrial Connectivity And Edge Computing: Engineer private LTE or 5G, Wi‑Fi 6, fiber, and edge compute for brine fields, HPAL, and conversion; assure coverage, latency, reliability, cyber-resilience for critical operations.

Capital Projects

  • Front-End Loading And Feasibility Optimization: Develop FEL 1–3, Class 5–3 estimates for DLE, HPAL, solvent extraction (SX)/ion exchange (IX), crystallization, conversion; optimize scope and layout; de-risk cost and schedule.
  • Delivery Model And EPC/EPCM Contracting Strategy: Structure EPC/EPCM and package contracts with performance guarantees, liquidated damages, warranties, and interface management; reduce claims, change orders, schedule risk, and installed cost.
  • Modularization And Constructability For Hydromet Plants: Apply modularization, offsite fabrication, 3D model/Building Information Modeling (BIM), pipe‑rack skids, heavy‑haul logistics; compress schedule, cut field hours, improve safety and remote‑site productivity.
  • Project Controls And Risk Assurance: Implement integrated cost and schedule controls, earned value, change control, quantity management, and Monte Carlo risk; improve predictability, P50–P80 confidence, and governance.
  • Commissioning, Start-Up And Operational Readiness: Plan commissioning and start‑up, turnover, Factory Acceptance Testing (FAT)/Site Acceptance Testing (SAT), procedures, spares, training, tests; accelerate ramp‑up to nameplate recovery, purity, throughput, availability.

Safety & Environmental

  • Process Safety Management For HPAL And Acid Plants: Implement Process Safety Management (PSM): HAZOP, layers of protection analysis (LOPA), relief systems, interlocks, permit‑to‑work, management of change; prevent autoclave ruptures, acid releases, fires.
  • Tailings And Residue Facility Risk Management: Enable Global Industry Standard on Tailings Management (GISTM) governance, controls, monitoring; implement trigger action response plans; reduce risk across tailings facilities, residue stacks, brine ponds.
  • Water Stewardship And Effluent Compliance: Design site water balance; optimize neutralization, metals precipitation, brine management, reuse; install monitoring and controls; meet discharge permits, lower make‑up water, prevent groundwater impacts.
  • Air Emissions Control And CEMS Assurance: Optimize SO2 and acid mist controls for acid plants, kilns, roasters; strengthen Continuous Emissions Monitoring Systems (CEMS) data integrity; reduce exceedances, opacity events, maintenance cost.
  • NORM/TENORM Management And Radiation Protection: Establish radiation protection for naturally occurring radioactive materials (NORM) and technologically enhanced NORM (TENORM): material balance, shielding, dosimetry, waste conditioning; protect workers; enable compliant disposal.

Regulatory Affairs & Permitting

  • Permitting Strategy And Critical Path Orchestration: Build permit register and sequencing; align design, studies, and submittals; execute agency engagement; de-risk schedule to construction start and operation, minimizing idle capital.
  • Environmental And Social Impact Assessment Management: Manage environmental and social impact assessments: baselines, alternatives, mitigation; navigate National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), CEQA, and international regimes; secure defensible approvals and practicable conditions.
  • Air, Water, Waste, And Radiation Permitting Packages: Prepare air, water, waste, tailings, and radiation permit applications—Title V and National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES); align design data; accelerate agency review and approval.
  • Land Access, Tenure, And Water Rights Strategy: Secure land tenure, mineral claims, water rights, and rights‑of‑way; coordinate surveys, applications, and agreements; de‑risk access disputes and schedule delays across mines and brine fields.
  • Indigenous And Community Engagement And Agreements: Design and execute Indigenous and community engagement—mapping, consultation, grievance; structure community benefit or impact benefit agreements; secure social license and durable permitting outcomes.

Commercial & Offtake Management

  • Offtake Structuring And Negotiation: Structure bankable offtakes for lithium hydroxide, nickel sulphate, cobalt sulphate, NdPr; define volumes, tenor, take-or-pay, prepayments, specs, warranties; enable financing and commercial certainty.
  • Customer Development And Go-To-Market: Segment OEMs, cathode, magnet, and alloy customers; design entry strategy, qualification pipeline, sampling and trials; secure long-term demand, premiums, and strategic partnerships.
  • Battery-Grade Qualification Enablement: Orchestrate customer audits, quality system alignment, supply chain transparency, sampling plans, and Production Part Approval Process (PPAP)-like packages; compress time-to-approval and unlock contracted volumes.
  • Contract Lifecycle And Nominations Management: Implement contract repository, obligations tracking, nominations, letters of credit, shipping windows, penalties, and regrades; reduce revenue leakage, disputes, and service failures.
  • Revenue Assurance And Claims Resolution: Standardize assay exchange, moisture loss, specifications, penalties, and settlement processes; manage quality claims and demurrage; improve netbacks and cash conversion.

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Find a consultant in our Rare Earths & Battery Metals Practice

Prefer email? Write to [email protected]

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