SelectREE, a developer of electrochemical separation technology for rare earth and critical metals, is pleased to announce an important technical breakthrough: clear and repeatable element-specific electrochemical responses have been recorded across its electrode systems. The laboratory work covered four elements over dozens of runs conducted during several weeks, providing the first technical indication that the company’s approach can consistently distinguish between individual elements.
The results represent an important step in SelectREE’s proprietary effort to replace the conventional solvent extraction stage of rare earth separation with an electrochemical process designed to be smaller, more modular and deployable closer to the source material.
Addressing the Separation Bottleneck
Rare earth elements are typically found together and have very similar chemical properties, making separation into individual, high-purity elements one of the most technically challenging stages of the supply chain. China accounts for approximately 91% of global rare earth separation and refining, according to the International Energy Agency, with Malaysia a distant second.
The conventional method, solvent extraction, generally requires large chemical plants with hundreds of stages, significant volumes of acids and solvents, and complex waste management systems. These facilities can be capital intensive, time consuming to build and difficult to permit.
SelectREE’s proprietary platform is designed to change the separation stage, not the upstream leaching process. Ore or recycled material would still be leached using a solution selected for the relevant feedstock. That solution would then be processed through SelectREE’s electrode-based system rather than through hundreds of solvent extraction stages.
First Technical Milestone
SelectREE’s latest laboratory results demonstrate distinct and repeatable electrochemical signatures for the elements tested. Consistently differentiating between elements is a foundational requirement for any selective separation process and provides the basis for the company’s next phase of development using real-world feed materials.
Discussing these results, Dr. David Malka, Chief Executive Officer of SelectREE commented, “When the curves stopped overlapping, we saw the first clear indication that electrochemistry could offer a new pathway beyond the century-old solvent extraction process. Rare earth elements are essential inputs for permanent magnets used in electric vehicles, wind turbines, hard drives, drones and guided defense systems. The ability to separate and refine these materials is therefore central to establishing secure, independent supply chains.”
Path Toward Commercial Deployment
SelectREE’s development plan consists of three principal stages: demonstrating that its electrodes can distinguish between elements; validating the process using real feed materials; and deploying a pilot unit at a customer site. The company’s long-term objective is to enable mine operators, manufacturers and recyclers to separate metals closer to the point of production or recovery, without waiting for a conventional centralized separation plant to be built.
The platform is being developed for primary ore, end-of-life magnets, manufacturing swarf and other material streams. SelectREE also intends to evaluate applications beyond rare earths as a broader electrochemical tool for mineral separation and refining.
SelectREE is backed by Cove Capital LLC, which invested in the company in April 2026 through one of its Portfolio companies. Cove Capital is led by Pini Althaus, a mining executive with more than two decades of experience across critical minerals.
“Separation remains one of the most consequential bottlenecks in the critical minerals supply chain. We backed SelectREE because its technology has the potential to make separation more modular and accessible at mine sites, manufacturing facilities and recycling operations, helping countries build supply chains that do not depend on a single processing center,” said Pini Althaus, Founder and CEO of Cove Capital LLC.
About SelectREE
SelectREE develops electrochemical separation technology for rare earth and critical metals, seeking to replace the solvent-extraction separation stage with an electrochemical process. Based in Petah Tikva, Israel, the company is developing its platform for primary ore, end-of-life magnets and manufacturing swarf. The approach is also being evaluated as a broader tool for separation and refining across the mining industry.
About Cove Capital LLC
Cove Capital, founded in 2015, is a mining-focused firm with its head offices in New York and Melbourne, Australia. Since 2018, the company has concentrated on critical minerals—identifying, investing in, and developing projects that support U.S. and allied supply chains. Under the leadership of Pini Althaus, Cove Capital brings deep sector knowledge and hands-on development experience across critical minerals, exploration, mining, processing, and offtakes. Pini Althaus was the Founder and CEO of USA Rare Earth LLC (Nasdaq: USAR), and is the Founder of Kaz Resources LLC, Cove Kaz Capital Group LLC and REEMAG LLC.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260818930243/en/
Media gallery
