Rare Earths Stocks: 5 Biggest ASX Companies in 2026

1. Lynas Rare Earths (ASX:LYC)

Market cap: AU$12.18 billion
Share price: AU$12.12

Lynas Rare Earths is Australia’s largest rare earths miner, as well as the only significant rare earth materials producer in the world outside of China. Focused on integrated delivery, Lynas is a miner and supplier of high-grade rare earths.

Its Mount Weld asset in Western Australia is one of the highest-grade rare earth mines in the world. The company also operates the Kalgoorlie rare earths processing facility and its Lynas Malaysia advanced materials plant in Malaysia.

In mid-2025, the company commenced first production of oxides of heavy rare earths dysprosium and terbium at its Lynas Malaysia facility from Mount Weld feedstock. In March 2026, it added samarium oxide to its list of heavy rare earth products.

Lynas launched its Towards 2030 strategy last year, and formed a number of key strategic partnerships in the past year focused on a mine-to-magnet supply chain. It signed an October 2025 memorandum of understanding with Noveon Magnetics, which describes itself as the only operational US manufacturer of sintered rare earth magnets, to build out a domestic supply chain in the US for rare earth permanent magnets.

In March 2026 Lynas extended its offtake agreement with existing partner Japan Australia Rare Earths, and signed a memorandum of understanding with Japan Australia Rare Earths for mineral exploration of rare earth elements and adjacent minerals. That same month, Lynas inked a letter of intent with the US Department of War concerning an approximately US$96 million rare earth oxide supply agreement.

Then, in July, Lynas entered into a formal long-term partnership with South Korean firm JS Link. JS will develop a rare earth permanent magnet factory in Malaysia that Lynas will supply with rare earth materials. Lynas is also making an AU$50 million equity investment to help fund the factory.

Lynas is also looking to expand beyond Australia and Malaysia. On October 1, it announced its acquisition of Meteoric Resources in an all-share deal valued at about AU$968 million that is expected to be completed by March 2027.

Meteoric owns the Caldeira project in Minas Gerais, Brazil, which hosts the largest known ionic clay JORC-compliant rare earth resource outside China and has a completed definitive feasibility study. Lynas said the acquisition would deliver on its goal of adding resource and scale, and would increase its measured and indicated rare earth resources by about 79 percent.

For its fiscal 2026 ended June 30, Lynas reported that ready for sale rare earth oxide production increased 25 percent to 13,089 tonnes. The company achieved record neodymium-praseodymium production in the second half of the year, while its full year production of the metals climbed 11 percent to 7,260 tonnes.

2. Iluka Resources (ASX:ILU)

Market cap: AU$2.5 billion
Share price: AU$5.80

Iluka Resources has decades of experience in the mining industry, mostly producing zircon and high-grade titanium dioxide derived from rutile and synthetic rutile. As part of those operations, the company has stockpiled rare earth minerals since the early 1990s and began developing them into rare earths projects in the 2010s.

In Western Australia, Iluka holds a strategic monazite-rich mineral stockpile, which it is expanding with material from its operations. The company is constructing the Eneabba rare earths refinery in Western Australia to process its stockpile, with commissioning expected in 2027. In its September quarter review, the company noted that construction on the plant was 65 percent complete.

The Australian government has provided the company with an AU$1.65 billion non-recourse loan for construction provided through Export Finance Australia’s Critical Minerals Facility.

The refinery will produce light and heavy separated rare earth oxides from feedstocks such as mineral sands concentrates, hard rock concentrates and ionic clay carbonates. In June 2026, Iluka announced a binding, four-year agreement with a global automotive company to supply 1,200 tonnes of magnet rare earth oxides from the refinery.

During the September 2026 quarter, Iluka produced dysprosium and terbium on specification and has purchased the equipment needed to produce up to 200 tonnes per year at commercial scale. Work on neodymium and praseodymium is ongoing.

Iluka’s Wimmera project in Victoria, Australia, also has the potential to be a long-term supplier of zircon and rare earths. The company outlined in its September report that the definitive feasibility study is scheduled for board consideration in the first half of 2027.

3. Arafura Rare Earths (ASX:ARU)

Market cap: AU$911.19 million
Share price: AU$0.145

Arafura Rare Earths is developing its Nolans neodymium and praseodymium project in Australia’s Northern Territory. The company made a final investment decision on the project in May 2026.

According to the company, the project will supply neodymium and praseodymium with an annual production capacity of 4,400 tonnes of concentrate. Arafura received an AU$200 million investment commitment from Australia’s National Reconstruction Fund in January 2025.

The company has signed several offtake agreements for production from Nolans, including one with Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy. In March 2025, Arafura announced a binding offtake agreement with Traxys Europe through which Arafura will supply a minimum of 100 tonnes per year of neodymium and praseodymium oxide over a five year term. Arafura has the option to increase the offtake to a maximum of 300 tonnes per year at its discretion.

In June 2026, it signed a binding term sheet to supply up to 500 tonnes per year of rare earth magnet feed, including neodymium and praseodymium, as well as dysprosium and terbium, to a company established by an Indian industrial group over an initial five year term.

In June 2026, the Nolans project was declared the first ever Significant Project in the Northern Territory under the Territory Coordinator Act 2025 for its economic significance to the region.

“As Australia’s first fully integrated ore-to-oxide rare earths facility, this project requires high-level, cross-government coordination to move at pace,” Northern Territory Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro stated.

Previously, the project was listed under the Australia and US Critical Minerals Framework, under which the Australian government has provided an equity investment of about AU$140 million.

Arafura held a groundbreaking ceremony at Nolans on October 8, officially marking the start of construction, which is expected to be completed in 2029.

4. Lindian Resources (ASX:LIN)

Market cap: AU$767.5 million
Share price: AU$0.415

Lindian Resources is a development company focused on advancing its Kangankunde rare earths project in Malawi, from which it expects to achieve first production of monazite concentrate in December 2026. The company also owns a downstream processing facility in Kazakhstan, as well as bauxite assets in Guinea and Tanzania.

A May 2024 mineral resource estimate reported Kangankunde’s combined indicated and inferred resource at 261 million tonnes grading 2.14 percent total rare earth oxides, of which 20.3 percent was neodymium and praseodymium oxides.

Lindian made a final investment decision in August 2025, which came alongside an announcement of an AU$91.5 million institutional placement. The project is currently under construction for the first stage of the operation, designed to produce a monazite concentrate containing 55 percent total rare earth oxides, with output of 15,300 tonnes per year.

The announcement also said the mining license expansion for the project's second stage has been approved, which could potentially increase production capacity to 50,000 tonnes per year.

Lindian and Iluka Resources have entered into a long-term strategic partnership for funding and offtake in August 2025. At the time, Iluka provided Lindian with a US$20 million loan facility, and agreed to purchase 6,000 tonnes per year from Stage 1 production. Iluka also holds a right of first refusal for up to 25,000 tonnes per year from Stage 2.

Lindian raised a further AU$100 million in April 2026 and noted that Stage 1 was fully funded.

In a construction update released on October 16, the company said that key processing equipment has been installed at Kangankunde, power infrastructure is advancing toward site energisation in early November and about 149,000 tonnes of ore has been stockpiled ahead of commissioning.

“Kangankunde is in the final stretch of construction. Our target is clear: first monazite concentrate in December,” Executive Director Zac Komur said. “Every milestone brings us closer to becoming a rare earths producer.”

Lindian is looking beyond Kangankunde, and in August 2026 acquired the outstanding 49 percent interest in the SARECO mixed rare earth carbonate processing facility in Stepnogorsk, Kazakhstan. The company said the operation gives it a direct downstream pathway for Kangankunde concentrate, allowing it to capture more value in the rare earths supply chain.

5. Meteoric Resources (ASX:MEI)

Market cap: AU$640.26 million
Share price: AU$0.22

Meteoric Resources is a development company advancing its Caldeira ionic clay rare earths project in Minas Gerais, Brazil. The company is the subject of a proposed acquisition by Lynas Rare Earths, which is expected to be completed by March 2027.

In July 2026, Meteoric released a definitive feasibility study for the project, outlining an economic case with a post-tax net present value of US$847 million and an internal rate of return of 24 percent, with a payback period of four years, based on July 2026 spot prices.

As for production, the study outlines average annual production of approximately 3,862 tonnes of neodymium-praseodymium oxides and 127 tonnes of dysprosium-terbium oxides over the mine's life.

Caldeira has received a preliminary environmental licence, and Meteoric expects its construction licence, which would allow construction to begin, in the fourth quarter of 2026.

“The DFS confirms Caldeira as a low capital intensive, low operating cost, long life asset containing abundant light and heavy magnetic rare earth elements essential to permanent magnet production,” Managing Director and CEO Stuart Gale said.

Additionally, Meteoric has signed non-binding offtake agreements with POSCO International (KRX:047050), Neo Performance Materials (TSX:NEO,OTCQX:NOPMF) and Ucore Rare Metals (TSXV:UCU).

In October, it agreed to be acquired by Lynas in an all-share deal valued at about AU$968 million, and Lynas has agreed to provide Meteoric up to AU$110 million in interim funding to continue developing Caldeira.

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