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yesterday

Pentagon Takes 15% Stake in MP Materials as Apple Commits $500 Million to U.S. Rare Earth Magnets

The U.S. government is anchoring rare earth pricing to undercut Chinese export leverage through a guaranteed price floor with offtake assurances.

A view of the MP Materials rare earth open-pit mine in Mountain Pass, California, U.S. January 30, 2020. Picture taken January 30, 2020. REUTERS/Steve Marcus/ File Photo
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Overview

  • The Department of Defense acquired a 15% equity stake in MP Materials, becoming its largest single shareholder in America’s only operational rare earth mine.
  • The Pentagon set a ten-year floor price of $110 per kilogram for neodymium-praseodymium oxide and pledged to purchase all magnets produced at U.S. facilities.
  • MP Materials plans to increase magnet output from 1,000 to 3,000 metric tons annually at its Texas plant and build a second facility to reach 10,000 tons per year.
  • Apple pledged $500 million to MP Materials to buy American-made rare earth magnets, expand neodymium manufacturing lines in Fort Worth and establish a recycling line at Mountain Pass.
  • With China refining over 90% of global rare earths and supplying nearly 70% of U.S. imports, these moves seek to secure domestic sources for clean-energy and defense technologies.