Metallurgy veteran joins Lofdal push

Namibia Critical Metals has appointed Niels Verbaan as vice president, Metallurgy, as it advances its Lofdal Heavy Rare Earth Project towards development.

Verbaan, a hydrometallurgy specialist with more than 25 years of experience, will join the company in May having served as Senior Director for Technical Services at SGS Lakefield.

In his new role, Verbaan will oversee metallurgical test work, flowsheet development, pilot programmes, and process optimisation at Lofdal, with a focus on maximising recovery of key heavy rare-earth elements — particularly dysprosium and terbium.

President Darrin Campbell said the appointment comes at a pivotal stage for the project, noting that Verbaan brings "a rare combination of deep rare earth expertise and hands-on execution experience," having worked on numerous global deposits including Lofdal, Foxtrot, Strange Lake, Nechalacho, Wicheeda Lake, Mountain Pass, and Serra Verde.

Campbell said the appointment "materially strengthens" the company's ability to deliver a robust, financeable definitive feasibility study (DFS), positioning Lofdal to advance towards development with a high degree of technical confidence, in close collaboration with its Japanese partners.

Verbaan has extensive experience in the design and operation of hydrometallurgical pilot plants, solvent extraction and separation technologies, and the development of processing routes for rare earths and other critical minerals. He has authored more than 50 technical papers, holds three patents, and is a recipient of the MetSoc Sherritt Hydrometallurgy Award.

The Lofdal project, located in north-western Namibia, is one of the few deposits globally with a strong concentration of heavy rare earth elements, positioning it as a potential future supplier to magnet supply chains used in electric vehicles, wind turbines, and other clean energy technologies.

Namibia Critical Metals is advancing the project alongside Japanese partners, focusing on developing a scalable processing route capable of supporting downstream separation and integration into global supply chains, as demand for non-Chinese sources of critical minerals continues to grow.