Big Sky Business Journal: “Extraordinary” Rare Earth Find in Montana

If you heard Evelyn Pyburn on Montana Talks earlier this week, she had a very interesting report talking about the "extraordinary" opportunity to develop rare earth minerals in Western Montana.

This is especially interesting in light of Ukrainian President Zilensky's disastrous performance at the White House on Friday that killed, if only temporarily, a mineral deal between Ukraine and the United States.

We told you back in 2023 about the rare earth potential of Sheep Creek when Evelyn wrote about it for the Big Sky Business Journal. She now has a lengthy, comprehensive report which you can find by clicking here.

Here's some of the highlights she had in the Hotsheet earlier this week: "MT Rare Earths Extraordinary"

The quality of a rare earth minerals find in Ravalli County, announced over two years ago, has been determined to be extraordinary – “transformational from a United States government and world perspective,” according to US Critical Materials—the mineral exploration company that is pursuing its development. An independent geochemical and geo-metallurgical analysis lab, released last Wednesday findings that the 1950’s abandoned niobium mine at Sheep Creek near Darby, holds the highest grades of any known rare earth deposits in the US, along with the highest concentrations of gallium — a material essential to national security.

Harvey Kaye is the director of the company looking into the potential opportunity at Sheep Creek. He says Montana will be “the point of the spear for national defense.”

Jim Hedrick is the president of the company, and is a former Rare Earth Commodity Specialist at the US Geological Survey who added this: "Over my 30+ year career evaluating properties for the U.S. government, I have never encountered a deposit with the high rare earth and gallium grades being generated at Sheep Creek.”

Here's audio of our chat with Evelyn on Monday: