U.S. Reclaims Control of Rare Earth Magnet Production with New Texas Facility

MP Materials has opened a new manufacturing facility in Fort Worth, Texas, marking a major step toward restoring the U.S. domestic supply chain for rare earth magnets. The plant produces critical materials for defense systems, reducing reliance on China, which controls over 90% of global production. This development brings the U.S. closer to a fully integrated rare earth magnet production capability.

U.S. Reclaims Control of Rare Earth Magnet Production with New Texas Facility

The United States has long been reliant on foreign countries, particularly China, for rare earth materials crucial to its defense industry. However, a significant shift is underway with the opening of MP Materials’ new facility in Fort Worth, Texas. This manufacturing plant is an important step toward achieving a fully integrated domestic supply chain for rare earth magnets, which are essential components in various defense and technology systems.

MP Materials, a Nevada-based company that already operates a rare earth mining and processing site at its Mountain Pass facility in California, announced the commencement of production at its Independence facility in January 2025. The new plant will produce neodymium-praseodymium metal and is currently trialing the production of automotive-grade sintered neodymium-iron-boron magnets. These materials, though their names may sound complex, are vital for a broad range of applications in defense systems, such as in drones, aircraft actuators, robotics, and even in submarines’ drive motors. According to Matt Sloustcher, MP Materials’ Chief Communications Officer, rare earth materials and magnets are integral to nearly all U.S. defense systems, making this domestic production a strategic and critical development.

For decades, China has controlled over 90% of the world’s capacity for producing high-performance magnets and rare earth materials, leaving the U.S. vulnerable to dependency on foreign sources for these essential materials. Sloustcher highlighted that the U.S. had not had the capability to produce rare earth magnets at scale in nearly a generation. The establishment of MP Materials’ Independence facility in Texas marks a pivotal moment in reversing this trend.

The process of manufacturing rare earth magnets begins at the Mountain Pass site, where materials are mined and refined into rare earth oxides. These oxides are then shipped to the Fort Worth facility, where they are reduced to metal and transformed into alloys, which are used to produce permanent magnets. Unlike most other facilities, MP Materials’ plant does not rely on external suppliers for raw materials but produces the full supply chain in-house, a key differentiator that strengthens the resilience of the U.S. supply chain for these critical materials.

The company’s efforts are bolstered by the high production levels at the Mountain Pass facility, which allows it to supply the Fort Worth plant with the raw materials necessary to create these magnets. Sloustcher emphasized that MP Materials is now on the cusp of having a fully integrated supply chain, which will dramatically reduce the risks associated with relying on external suppliers, particularly China. Single points of failure in supply chains are a significant concern, and with the facility now operational, the U.S. is moving closer to eliminating this vulnerability.

Construction of the Texas facility began in April 2022, and in less than three years, the site has evolved from a vacant field to a fully operational manufacturing plant with over 100 employees. This rapid transformation is significant, as the U.S. had previously seen the closure of its rare earth magnet manufacturing plants in the 1990s and early 2000s, with much of the industry moving overseas. Until now, there has never been a fully integrated rare earth magnet manufacturing facility in the U.S.

In 2022, MP Materials received a $35 million contract from the U.S. Department of Defense to support its Mountain Pass operations. However, Sloustcher noted that the company’s investments in the rare earth magnetics sector have been privately funded, underscoring its commitment to rebuilding the domestic supply chain without relying solely on government funding.

In conclusion, MP Materials’ new Texas facility represents a major step forward for the United States in securing its supply of critical rare earth materials. By establishing a fully integrated supply chain for high-performance magnets, the company is reducing the nation’s dependence on foreign suppliers and addressing vulnerabilities in the defense sector. This initiative is not only essential for national security but also for ensuring that the U.S. remains competitive in the global market for advanced technologies reliant on rare earth materials.