Rhenium extraction from Kuril volcano gas may start in 24 months

Pilot-scale extraction of rhenium and other rare metals for subsequent refinement and separation from concentrate may begin in Russia within two years at the world’s only commercial rhenium deposit — the Kudryavy Volcano on Iturup Island (Kuril Islands), one of investors in the Russian Rhenium project Maxim Korobov said.

"The project is currently in the research and development phase, which has intensified since 2015. We hold several patents based on the selected technologies and our findings, and are now progressing toward the construction of a pilot plant," Korobov said. The project is being financed by private investors.

"We are shifting toward exporting the concentrate containing rare and rare-earth metals for further processing on the mainland," Korobov noted. Besides rhenium, the initiative also includes the extraction of indium and germanium.

Each year, the company dispatches a team to the volcano, works on ensuring safe presence in this hazardous area, and evaluates various technological models to extract rare and rare-earth elements from toxic, high-temperature volcanic gases, he added.

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