Viridis Mining and Minerals Ltd. secured Brazilian government funding for a rare-earth project, as the country seeks to tap more of the world’s largest reserves outside China. Brazilian development bank BNDES approved a 77.5 million-real ($15 million) facility for 16 years toward a research center and a recently opened demonstration plant for the Colossus project, Viridis Chief Executive Officer Rafael Moreno said in an interview. The funding supports Brazil’s effort to develop domestic rare-earth processing capacity and reduce reliance on Chinese supply chains.

The Colossus project aims to advance exploration and pilot-scale production of critical minerals essential for clean energy technologies and high-tech manufacturing.