PUTRAJAYA: Lynas Malaysia can continue its operations in Malaysia provided it cleans up the raw material brought into the country first, said Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
The Prime Minister said Malaysia had imposed additional conditions on Lynas, compelling it to take away the waste so that the company could continue its operations in Gebeng.
“But where do they want to take the waste to? They want to take it to Australia? But they (Australia) do not want to accept it. We can’t do it anyway.
“What we have done is that we have open up the business to other people and there are other companies ready to acquire Lynas.
“They had given us the promise that in future, before sending the raw material to Malaysia, they will clean it up first, crack it and decontaminate it somewhere in regard to radioactivity,” he told a press conference here today.
Dr Mahathir said these companies or even Lynas could continue their operations if they promise to crack (clean up) the raw material first before bringing it into the country.
“If the raw material comes here (Malaysia) and the volume is less, then the waste from that raw material is not dangerous to anybody,” he added.
In November last year, it was reported that Lynas, which processes rare earths at its Malaysia factory in the Gebeng Industrial Zone here, would temporarily halt its operations in December.
The decision was taken at Lynas Corporation Ltd’s annual general meeting in Sydney on Nov 28, after its CEO, Amanda Lacaze allegedly told the meeting that Malaysia did not allow them to increase production of lanthanide. — Bernama
