MOSCOW, March 28. /TASS/. Russian state nuclear power corporation Rosatom has plans to complete construction on a rare earth metals plant by the end of 2026 and produce the first batch in early 2027, Ruslan Dilmukhamedov, president of the Association of Rare and Rare Earth Metals Producers and Consumers and CEO of the Solikamsk Magnesium Plant, told TASS.

Project support measures are being discussed now, the senior executive said. "We are now discussing support measures the project needs to have financial stability at the starting stage. Clearly, it should be provided with the status of a priority regional investment project. Furthermore, the decision should be made on the mechanism of additional support to raise required funds for the project," he noted.

The required amount of investment stands at 7 bln rubles ($75.9 mln). "If these funds are allocated in time, then we plan to complete the plant construction by late 2026 and make the first products in early 2027," the CEO noted.

The process has already been worked out and its replication for large-scale production continues, Dilmukhamedov said. The site has been selected for the future plant and construction contractors and process equipment manufacturers are being selected. The design provides for annual production of 2,500 metric tons of rare earth products, including oxides of lanthanum, cerium, neodymium and praseodymium, and the group concentrate of rare earth metals.