Chain

Rare Earths to Magnets: The Chain

The full chain runs mineral ore to concentrate, separated oxides, metal and alloy, and finally sintered NdFeB magnets. The United States mines rare earths at scale but separates and converts only a fraction of them; nearly everything between the mine and the magnet has run through China. This page traces each stage through real facilities, the federal instruments behind them, and the policy actions reshaping the chain.

Facts on this page last re-verified Aug 11, 2026 — the oldest verification date among its current claims. How we verify.

Stage diagram

Mining is a bottleneck, but the biggest issue is that the United States produced 45,000 tons of REO in concentrate in 2024 but only 7,600 tons of separated compounds, and remained 80% import-reliant for compounds and metals. The chain's tightest constraints sit downstream: separation capacity (above all for heavy rare earths), oxide-to-metal conversion, and qualified magnet output.

Materials at this stage: Rare Earth Ore, Bastnaesite Concentrate, Monazite Concentrate

Facility-line flow trace

Facility / line	Location	Stage and derived state	Input → output
Energy Fuels White Mesa Mill Phase 1 monazite-to-NdPr oxide separation circuit	Blanding, Utah United States	Separation Operating	Monazite Concentrate → NdPr Oxide
Energy Fuels White Mesa Mill Heavy rare earth (Tb/Dy oxide) expansion	Blanding, Utah United States	Separation Under construction	Monazite Concentrate → Dysprosium and Terbium Oxides
MP Materials Mountain Pass Mining and concentration	Mountain Pass, California United States	Mining & feedstock Operating	Rare Earth Ore → Bastnaesite Concentrate
MP Materials Mountain Pass Rare earth separation (light and heavy circuits)	Mountain Pass, California United States	Separation Operating	Bastnaesite Concentrate → NdPr Oxide
NioCorp Elk Creek Mine and processing plant (planned)	Elk Creek, Nebraska United States	Mining & feedstock Announced	Rare Earth Ore → NdPr Oxide
Rare Element Resources Upton Demonstration Plant Rare earth processing and separation demonstration line	Upton, Wyoming United States	Separation Commissioned	Rare Earth Ore → NdPr Oxide
USA Rare Earth Round Top Mountain Mining and processing (planned)	Sierra Blanca, Texas United States	Mining & feedstock Announced	Rare Earth Ore → Mixed Rare Earth Carbonate
Arafura Nolans Rare Earths Project Mining and beneficiation	Nolans site, 135 km north of Alice Springs, Northern Territory Australia	Mining & feedstock Financed	Rare Earth Ore → Monazite Concentrate
Arafura Nolans Rare Earths Project Extraction and separation (NdPr oxide)	Nolans site, 135 km north of Alice Springs, Northern Territory Australia	Separation Financed	Monazite Concentrate → NdPr Oxide
Hastings Yangibana Rare Earths Project Mining and beneficiation (Yangibana, Stage 1)	Yangibana, Gifford Creek Station, approximately 250 km northeast of Carnarvon (Stage 2 hydrometallurgical plant planned at Onslow), Western Australia Australia	Mining & feedstock Financed	Rare Earth Ore → Monazite Concentrate
Hastings Yangibana Rare Earths Project Hydrometallurgical plant (Onslow, Stage 2)	Yangibana, Gifford Creek Station, approximately 250 km northeast of Carnarvon (Stage 2 hydrometallurgical plant planned at Onslow), Western Australia Australia	Mining & feedstock Announced	Monazite Concentrate → Mixed Rare Earth Carbonate
Iluka Resources Eneabba Rare Earths Refinery Rare earth refining and separation (light and heavy)	Eneabba, Western Australia Australia	Separation Under construction	Monazite Concentrate → NdPr Oxide, Dysprosium and Terbium Oxides
Lynas Kalgoorlie Rare Earths Processing Facility Cracking and leaching (mixed rare earth carbonate)	Kalgoorlie-Boulder (Lot 500 Great Eastern Highway, Yilkari), Western Australia Australia	Mining & feedstock Operating	Monazite Concentrate → Mixed Rare Earth Carbonate
SRC Rare Earth Processing Facility Monazite hydrometallurgy and REE separation	Saskatoon, Saskatchewan Canada	Separation Under construction	Monazite Concentrate → NdPr Oxide
Torngat Metals Strange Lake Rare Earth Project Strange Lake open-pit mine and concentration plant (planned)	Strange Lake (Lac Brisson), Nunavik, Quebec Canada	Mining & feedstock Financed	Rare Earth Ore → Mixed Rare Earth Carbonate
Caremag Lacq Rare earth recycling and refining (mixed magnet and concentrate feed)	Lacq, Pyrenees-Atlantiques France	Separation Under construction	Magnet Scrap and End-of-Life Feedstock, Monazite Concentrate → Dysprosium and Terbium Oxides, NdPr Oxide
LKAB ReeMAP (Malmberget/Per Geijer — Luleå Industrial Park) Apatite extraction and beneficiation (Malmberget, Per Geijer)	Luleå, Norrbotten County Sweden	Mining & feedstock Announced	Rare Earth Ore → Monazite Concentrate
LKAB ReeMAP (Malmberget/Per Geijer — Luleå Industrial Park) Apatite-to-critical-minerals processing (Luleå demonstration plant)	Luleå, Norrbotten County Sweden	Separation Under construction	Monazite Concentrate → Mixed Rare Earth Carbonate

Sources

U.S. Geological Survey · published Jan 1, 2025 · retrieved Aug 11, 2026 · archive
MP Materials · published Jul 10, 2025 · retrieved Aug 11, 2026 · archive