
8 Products, One Ore Body, $560/Ton Margin: CEO Mark Smith on NioCorp's Updated Feasibility Study
CEO Mark Smith joins RedChip to break down NioCorp's (Nasdaq: NB) newly updated Elk Creek feasibility study and the company's expanding role in U.S. critical minerals supply.NioCorp Developments is advancing the Elk Creek Critical Minerals Project in Nebraska, a domestic source of niobium, scandium, titanium, and magnetic rare earth elements the U.S. currently imports at rates Smith details in the interview. As Smith explains, the updated feasibility study reflects "a tremendous amount of work" on metallurgy, with the project now positioned to produce eight distinct products from a single ore body — what he calls "a risk mitigation device for a mining company" rarely seen in the industry.The additional product streams translate directly to economics: Smith states the margin on the ore body is about $560 per ton of ore, against a mine plan of roughly one million tons of ore per year. On the scandium side, Smith discusses NioCorp's work with the Department of War, including the $10 million grant received in August 2025, and a newly announced non-binding memorandum of understanding with Lockheed Martin for the potential purchase of "up to 15 tons per year of scandium" from the Elk Creek operation. Smith also references the company's ongoing weekly discussions with the U.S. Export-Import Bank as it works toward financing to reach construction.Smith closes by describing scandium as one of the more overlooked pieces of NioCorp's portfolio today, but one he expects to become "one of the flashier pieces of our project" as the defense and aerospace applications gain traction. NioCorp holds locked-in offtake agreements covering 75% of planned niobium output with Thyssenkrupp and Traxys North America, alongside the largest scandium sales deal on record with Traxys.👉 NioCorp Developments (NB) is a client of RedChip. To learn more about NB and to read our full disclosure, visit: redchip.com/stocks/NB#NB #NioCorp #CriticalMinerals #RareEarths #Scandium #Niobium #Nasdaq #SmallCapStocks #MicroCapStocks #DefenseStocks #NationalSecurity #MiningStocks #InvestorEducation #StockInterviews





