Appointment of Non Executive Director

Rainbow Rare Earths Limited 

("Rainbow" or the "Company")

(LSE: RBW)

17 May 2021

Appointment of Non-Executive Director Ambassador J. Peter Pham

Rainbow Rare Earths Ltd is pleased to announce the appointment of Ambassador J. Peter Pham as a Non-Executive Director of the Company.

Ambassador Pham, Distinguished Fellow at the Atlantic Council in Washington, served as US Special Envoy for the Great Lakes from 2018-2020. In this capacity, he was the lead US official responsible for shaping and coordinating U.S. strategy on cross-border security, political and economic issues in this region, including Burundi where he led U.S. diplomatic efforts to rebuild and restore effective relations with the current government.

Ambassador Pham also served as U.S. Special Envoy for the Sahel region of Africa from 2020-2021 with personal rank of Ambassador. Earlier in his career, he served as Vice President for Research and Regional Initiatives at the Atlantic Council and Director of its Africa Centre. His previous academic assignments include: tenured Associate Professor of Political Science, Justice Studies and Africana Studies at James Madison University as well as Adjunct Instructor on African Affairs at several U.S. Armed Forces institutions.

Ambassador Pham holds a B.A. in economics from the University of Chicago and a doctorate from the Gregorian University (Rome), as well as postgraduate degrees in history, law, international relations, and theology. He is the author of more than 300 articles, essays and reviews on African politics, security and economic issues. Ambassador Pham is also Vice Chairman of the Board of the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art in Washington, as well as a Non-Executive Director of Africell Global Holdings.

Ambassador Pham is the recipient of many awards over the course of his career, including National Order of Merit Awards from the governments of Niger, Mali, Burkina Faso and Gabon. He speaks French, Italian, Vietnamese and Spanish.

Adonis Pouroulis, Non-Executive Chairman, said "The Board of Rainbow Rare Earths is very pleased to welcome Peter. He brings a rich and detailed understanding of African political and economic issues to the company, as well as insights and relationships across Africa and Washington. As the architect of efforts to reform and rebuild U.S. relations with Burundi, Peter's insights will be invaluable."

The company confirms that there is no further information required to be disclosed pursuant to paragraph 9.6.13 of the UK Listing Rules.

**ENDS**

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Notes to Editors:

Rainbow's strategy is to become a globally-significant producer of rare earth metals. NdPr are vital components of the strongest permanent magnets used for the motors and turbines driving the green technology revolution. Analysts are predicting demand for magnet rare earth oxides will grow substantially over the coming years, driven by increasing adoption of green technology, pushing the overall market for NdPr into deficit.

The Phalaborwa Rare Earths Project, located in South Africa, comprises approximately 35 million tonnes of gypsum tailings stacked in unconsolidated dumps derived from historic phosphate hard rock mining, containing rare earth elements with an initial estimated average in situ grade of 0.45% TREO, based on previous sampling campaigns, of which +/- 30% comprises high-value NdPr. The rare earths are contained in chemical form in the gypsum dumps, which is expected to deliver a higher-value rare earth carbonate, with lower operating costs than a typical rare earth mineral project.

The Company's Gakara Project in Burundi, which produces one of the highest-grade concentrates in the world (typically 54% total rare earths oxides ("TREO")) through ongoing trial mining operations, is currently the only African producer of rare earths. The Gakara basket is weighted heavily towards NdPr, which account for over approximately 19.5% of the contained TREO and 85% of the value of the concentrate.