Southern Alliance Mining shifts focus to rare earths to offset iron-ore volatility

[KUALA LUMPUR] Few motorists travelling the Baling-Gerik highway linking Kedah and Perak know that the nearby forested hills are home to a rare-earth mine central to the recovery of Southern Alliance Mining (SAM).

Unlike the usual image of dusty pits and heavy digging, the site owned by Malaysia-based MCRE Resources, a SAM associate, remains lush and green.

Beneath the trees, pipes deliver the in-situ leaching method: mild chemical liquid pumped through soil to extract rare minerals without blasting or open excavation.