The Atomic Energy Licensing Board (AELB) has approved the application for a temporary operating licence (TOL) by Lynas (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, effective for a two-year period from Sept 3 this year.

The AELB said in a statement today that the TOL would enable Lynas to conduct trial processing of lanthanide concentrates in stages and in limited quantities under close and continuous surveillance by the authorities.

It said the TOL was issued following a meeting last Monday after it was satisfied that Lynas had fulfilled all technical aspects, including the institution of dust control measures and radioactivity immobilisation methodologies in its residue management system, and all regulatory requirements.

The AELB also took note that Lynas had made a commitment to remove from Malaysia the Water Leach Purification residue arising from the Lynas Advanced Materials Plant (Lamp) project, it said.

It also said that at a meeting on Jan 30 this year, the AELB decided to approve the application for a TOL by Lynas, subject to several conditions.

The TOL, however, was not issued since Lynas needed to fulfil additional conditions under the Atomic Energy Licensing Act (Act 304) and its subsidiary regulations, it added.

The Lamp is a project of Lynas Malaysia Sdn Bhd which aims to process raw lanthanide concentrates imported from Mount Weld in Western Australia to produce rare earth oxides and carbonates at the Gebeng industrial area in Kuantan, Pahang.

On March 20 this year, the Dewan Rakyat passed a proposal to set up a committee comprising nine members of parliament to study issues of public concern as well as the safety standard of the project.

However, only five Barisan Nasional and one independent members took part after the opposition turned down nominations for the committee.

Among the issues raised by certain parties related to the project were the safety of radiation exposure, environment, health and residue management.

After several meetings, the committee tabled a report in the Dewan Rakyat on June 25, and proposed that a TOL be issued to enable the plant to operate.

Lynas chose to operate in Malaysia because of its cheaper production costs compared to Australia while China had tightened export of the product.

Lynas too had obtained licences to build the plant in the two countries.

- Bernama