USARA very expensive date with Brazil
USA Rare Earth is making its biggest move yet: a definitive agreement to buy Serra Verde Group, owner of the Pela Ema rare earth mine in Goiás, Brazil. The price tag is about $3.1 billion total, split between $300 million in cash and 126.849 million new USAR shares.
Why this matters
If you’re a rare earth bull, this is the kind of deal that can turn a scrappy miner into a more serious supply-chain player. Management says the combined company could generate roughly $1.8 billion of EBITDA by the end of 2030 — which is the sort of number that makes investors sit up straight and check their coffee.
But big deals don’t come with small fine print
The transaction still needs customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals, and the company expects it to close in Q3 2026. That means this isn’t a done deal yet; it’s more like the opening scene of a movie where everyone smiles for the cameras and then spends the next few months negotiating with lawyers.
Also worth noting: the deal brings new leadership into the mix. Serra Verde chairman Sir Mick Davis and CEO Thras Moraitis are set to join USA Rare Earth’s board, and Moraitis will become president of USAR. So this isn’t just asset shopping — it’s also a management makeover.
The bigger picture
USA Rare Earth has been stacking up milestones lately, from a new commercial chief to first commercial yttrium production in the UK. This acquisition cranks the ambition dial way up. Big picture: if the company can actually integrate the mine, the processing, and the leadership without tripping over its own shoelaces, it could become a far more important player in the non-Chinese rare earth story.