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Australia
Tronox Holdings plc (rare earths)
A titanium dioxide producer that sells monazite recovered from its mineral sands mines and plans a Western Australia plant to turn monazite into 10,000 t/yr of mixed rare earth carbonate, with a US separation refinery under study as a second step.
Points to check
Facts from the sources on this page that a reader should weigh before relying on the company's own figures.
- The EXIM and EFA letters for up to US$600 million are non-binding and conditional on due diligence, environmental and social review and approvals (Tronox release, 9 Dec 2025).
- Tronox's 2025 10-K risk factors state it may not arrange the required financing or develop a viable rare earth supply chain even if financing is obtained.
- No capital cost, NPV, IRR or price deck has been published for the MREC plant; management said in Aug 2026 it is prioritizing completion of the DFS before giving capital estimates.
- Rare earth revenue is not separately reported: monazite is included in 'Other products' with pig iron and TiCl4, and no monazite tonnage or grade is disclosed in the 10-K or 10-Qs.
- The separation step (a US refinery, possibly at Hamilton, Mississippi) is at site-scoping stage with no date or capacity, and management said it may need a strategic partner for separated oxides (Q2 2026 call, 6 Aug 2026).
At a glance
- Founded
- 2005 — Spun off from Kerr-McGee via an IPO in November 2005 and fully independent from March 2006; acquired Exxaro's mineral sands business in June 2012 and Cristal in April 2019. Monazite is a co-product of its titanium mineral sands mining in Australia and South Africa; the rare earth processing strategy is a recent add-on to the TiO2 business.
- Headquarters
- Stamford, Connecticut, United States (incorporated in England and Wales as a plc)
- Ownership
- Listed on NYSE (TROX). Largest holder Cristal Netherlands (Tasnee group) with 37,580,000 shares, about 24% of outstanding shares, per the 2025 proxy (record date 10 Mar 2025); two Cristal-appointed directors. Holds an approximately 5% equity interest in Lion Rock Minerals (ASX: LRM).
- Stage
- Early stage. Tronox is a large, long-operating TiO2 producer that sells monazite as a mineral sands co-product, but its rare earth processing business (WA MREC plant and possible US refinery) has no investment decision: the PFS is done and the DFS is due Q3 2027. Rated early for rare-earth processing under the atlas rule.
- Listing
- NYSE: TROX
- Revenue
- US$2,898 million
Reported, FY2025 (year ended 31 Dec 2025).
Source
Capacity
Each date below links to the document the figure came from. A capacity figure with no source is not on this page.
| What | Figure | Status | As of |
|---|---|---|---|
| Western Australia cracking and leaching facility (MREC) | 10,000 t/yr on a total rare earth oxide (TREO) basis, product out as mixed rare earth carbonate | Announced | Aug 2026 |
| Monazite sales from existing mineral sands operations | Not disclosed (no tonnage, grade or TREO content published in 10-K, 10-Qs or releases reviewed) | Operating | May 2026 |
| US separated-oxide refinery (possible Hamilton, Mississippi site) | Not disclosed | Announced | Aug 2026 |
Narrative
Tronox mines mineral sands in Australia and South Africa for titanium feedstock and zircon, and has long sold the monazite that comes with them; its 2025 annual report describes past sales of monazite in unconcentrated form as a waste product, and its chief executive told Congress in 2023 that rare earth-bearing tailings had historically gone to Chinese processors. Rare earth revenue is not reported separately. The company has completed a pre-feasibility study for a cracking and leaching plant in Western Australia to produce mixed rare earth carbonate containing both light and heavy rare earths; on its August 2026 call it gave the planned output as 10,000 t/yr on a TREO basis, the definitive feasibility study as due in the third quarter of 2027, and start-up as expected in late 2029. No site, capital cost or investment decision has been published. In December 2025 the Export-Import Bank of the United States and Export Finance Australia issued conditional, non-binding letters for up to US$600 million. A second phase, a US refinery to separate the carbonate into oxides, is at site-scoping stage, and management has said Tronox is not pursuing metals or magnets. In October 2025 it bought about 5% of Lion Rock Minerals, which holds a monazite-rutile project in Cameroon.
Where public sources disagree
- Sources differ on whether the DFS had started by late 2025: the Q3 2025 earnings call (Nov 2025, secondary transcript via Investing.com) quotes management saying it had 'completed a pre-feasibility study and have started a definitive feasibility study', while the 9 Dec 2025 release says the project is 'now progressing to a definitive feasibility study' and the Q1 2026 call (7 May 2026) describes 'progress ... towards our definitive feasibility study'.
- Financing is stated in different currencies: Tronox (9 Dec 2025) says up to US$600 million aggregate; the Australian Trade Minister (13 Apr 2026) says approximately A$849 million, up to around A$424 million each from EFA and EXIM. US$600M / A$849M = 0.707 USD per AUD, so the two figures are consistent at that exchange rate.
Latest reports
| Period | Published | Report |
|---|---|---|
| Quarter ended 30 Jun 2026 | 2026-08-06 | Tronox Holdings plc Form 10-Q, Q2 2026 (full submission text file) |
| Quarter ended 30 Jun 2026 | 2026-08-05 | Tronox Reports Second Quarter 2026 Financial Results |
| Quarter ended 31 Mar 2026 | 2026-05-07 | Tronox Holdings plc Form 10-Q (trox-20260331) |
| Year ended 31 Dec 2025 | 2026-02-20 | Tronox Holdings plc Form 10-K (trox-20251231) |
Across these reports
Rare earth revenue is not reported separately. Across 2025-2026 reports the MREC plant moved from a completed pre-feasibility study to a definitive study due Q3 2027, with 10,000 t/yr TREO and late-2029 start-up first stated in August 2026; financing letters remain conditional.
| Measure | What the reports show |
|---|---|
| study | PFS for a WA cracking and leaching facility completed by Dec 2025; DFS under way with completion expected Q3 2027 (Aug 2026). |
| capacity | First published capacity figure: 10,000 t/yr TREO basis MREC, start-up expected late 2029 (Q2 2026 call, 6 Aug 2026). Earlier documents (Dec 2025 release, 2025 10-K) gave no capacity. |
| scope | Stated strategy moved from selling rare earth-bearing tailings (historically to Chinese processors, per May 2023 testimony) to a planned MREC plant in Australia and a possible US separated-oxide refinery; Q3 2025 call said the company is not pursuing metallization or magnets. |
| financing | Non-binding EXIM/EFA letters for up to US$600M (9 Dec 2025); Australian government listed the project under the Australia-US Critical Minerals Framework at about A$849M (13 Apr 2026). Management said in May 2026 the project received Australian federal major project status (not independently confirmed on a government page). |
| consolidated revenue | Q1 2026 $760M vs Q1 2025 $738M; Q2 2026 $868M; Q2 2026 GAAP net loss $171M; Q4 2025 net loss $176M. Other products (includes monazite) $55M in Q1 2026 (-35% y/y) and $71M in Q2 2026 (-7% y/y), with changes attributed mainly to pig iron. |
Stated dates
| Target | First stated | Now | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Definitive feasibility study completion (Australian MREC plant) | DFS reported as started (Q3 2025 call, Nov 2025) / 'progressing to' a DFS (9 Dec 2025 release); no completion date given | Expected to conclude Q3 2027 (Q2 2026 release, 5 Aug 2026) | not yet due |
| Final investment decision (Australian MREC plant) | No FID date stated in any document reviewed | No FID date stated | not yet due |
| First production / start-up (Australian MREC plant) | Nov 2023 press report: Tronox planned to stockpile monazite for 3-5 years before processing begins (secondary, Proactive, 29 Nov 2023) | Start-up expected late 2029 (Q2 2026 call, 6 Aug 2026) | not yet due |
| US rare earth refinery (separated oxides) | May 2023 congressional testimony: Tronox 'now considering building a rare earth processing plant in Hamilton, Mississippi' | Aug 2026: second phase; scoping possible sites including Hamilton; no date, capacity or partner | not yet due |
Figures are as the company reported them, linked to each report. This summarizes what changed between reports; it is not a view on the company or its shares.
Sources
- Export-Import Bank of the United States and Export Finance Australia Provide Conditional and Non-Binding Support for Potential Financing of up to US$600 Million to Advance Tronox's Rare Earth Strategy — Tronox (2025-12-09)
- Tronox Holdings plc Form 10-K for fiscal year 2025 — SEC EDGAR (2026-02-20)
- Tronox Holdings plc Form 10-Q for quarter ended 31 Mar 2026 — SEC EDGAR (2026-05-07)
- EDGAR filing index 0001530804-26-000010 — SEC EDGAR (2026-05-07)
- Tronox Holdings plc Form 10-Q for quarter ended 30 Jun 2026 (full submission) — SEC EDGAR (2026-08-06)
- TROX 0001530804-26-000015 10-Q Filing: Aug 6, 2026 — Equibles (2026-08-06)
- Tronox 2025 results: TiO2 revenues, cost cuts, debt move (10-K summary) — Stock Titan (2026-02-20)
- Tronox Reports Second Quarter 2026 Financial Results — Tronox (2026-08-05)
- Tronox (TROX) Q2 2026 Earnings Call Transcript — The Motley Fool (2026-08-06)
- Tronox Q2 Earnings Call Highlights — Yahoo Finance (2026-08)
- Tronox Reports First Quarter 2026 Financial Results — Tronox (2026-05-06)
- Tronox (TROX) Q1 2026 Earnings Call Transcript — The Motley Fool (2026-05-07)
- Tronox Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2025 Financial Results — Tronox (2026-02-18)
- Tronox (TROX) Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript — AOL / Motley Fool (2026-02-19)
- Tronox Announces Closure of its Pigment Plant in China and Releases Selected Preliminary Fourth Quarter 2025 Financial Results — Tronox (2026-01-26)
- Tronox Reports Third Quarter 2025 Financial Results — Tronox (2025-11-05)
- Earnings call transcript: Tronox Q3 2025 results miss expectations — Investing.com (2025-11)
- Australia-US Critical Minerals Framework investing in additional projects — Australian Minister for Trade and Tourism (2026-04-13)
- Lion Rock Minerals receives $8.6m cornerstone investment to advance Minta monazite-rutile project — Small Caps (2025-10-15)
- Cameroon's Minta Mineral Project Secures $5.4M in Lion Rock, Tronox Deal — Business in Cameroon (2025-10-15)
- Written testimony of John D. Romano before the House Ways and Means Committee — US House Ways and Means Committee (2023-05-09)
- Tronox plans rare earths processing plant in Australia as decarbonisation efforts gather pace — Proactive Investors (2023-11-29)
- Tronox outlines plans to build out its rare-earth supply chain — Chemical Engineering (2025-12-11)
- Tronox secures $600m in rare earth supply chain financing from EXIM and EFA — Mining Technology (2025-12-10)
- TROX's Rare-Earth Option and China Exit Could Reshape 2026 — Zacks via TradingView (2026)
- Tronox Holdings plc 2025 proxy statement (DEF 14A) — SEC EDGAR (2025-03-27)
- Global Locations — Tronox (2026-09)
- Tronox — Wikipedia (2026-09)
How this page is sourced
Everything here comes from public sources — company filings, annual reports, exchange announcements, government releases and trade press. Every figure is linked to the document it came from and carries the date that document was published, because a capacity number without a date is not a fact, it is a rumor with a decimal point.
What is deliberately absent: material nonpublic information. I have spent more than two decades in this industry and a good deal of what I know about these companies I learned under NDA. Those obligations do not expire and they do not bend for a website. Nothing I have been told in confidence appears here in any form, and nothing on this page — or missing from it — should be read as a signal about what I know privately. I hold NDAs absolutely. It is the reason clients tell me things.
Judgment is the other thing left out on purpose. This page reports what has been published and who published it. Whether a target is credible, whether a ramp will hold, whether a capacity figure survives contact with the plant behind it — that is the work I do for clients, and it does not belong in a free reference page.
Where public sources disagree, I say so rather than picking a winner. Where a figure has not been published, the field says so rather than carrying an estimate. An empty field is information too.
Public filings tell you what a company has said. Whether it holds up is a different question, and the one I get hired to answer.
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