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In the first-of-its-kind deal, Apple and MP Materials will launch an all-new recycling facility for processing recycled rare earth elements

Today Apple announced a new commitment of $500 million with MP Materials, the only fully integrated rare earth producer in the United States. With this multiyear deal, Apple is committed to buying American-made rare earth magnets developed at MP Materials’ flagship Independence facility in Fort Worth, Texas. The two companies will also work together to establish a cutting-edge rare earth recycling line in Mountain Pass, California, and develop novel magnet materials and innovative processing technologies to enhance magnet performance. The commitment is part of Apple’s pledge to spend more than $500 billion in the U.S. over the next four years, and builds on the company’s long history of investment in American innovation, advanced manufacturing, and next-generation recycling technologies.

“American innovation drives everything we do at Apple, and we’re proud to deepen our investment in the U.S. economy,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “Rare earth materials are essential for making advanced technology, and this partnership will help strengthen the supply of these vital materials here in the United States. We couldn’t be more excited about the future of American manufacturing, and we will continue to invest in the ingenuity, creativity, and innovative spirit of the American people.”

Apple and MP Materials will build out the state-of-the-art Texas factory with a series of neodymium magnet manufacturing lines specifically designed for Apple products. The new equipment and technical capacity will allow MP Materials to significantly boost its overall production. Once built, the American-made magnets will be shipped across the country and all over the world, helping to meet increasing global demand for the material. The increased production will support dozens of new jobs in advanced manufacturing and R&D. The two companies will provide extensive training to develop the workforce, building an entirely new pool of U.S. talent and expertise in magnet manufacturing. . .

In the first-of-its-kind deal, Apple and MP Materials will launch an all-new recycling facility for processing recycled rare earth elements >Today Apple announced a new commitment of $500 million with MP Materials, the only fully integrated rare earth producer in the United States. With this multiyear deal, Apple is committed to buying American-made rare earth magnets developed at MP Materials’ flagship Independence facility in Fort Worth, Texas. The two companies will also work together to establish a cutting-edge rare earth recycling line in Mountain Pass, California, and develop novel magnet materials and innovative processing technologies to enhance magnet performance. The commitment is part of Apple’s pledge to spend more than $500 billion in the U.S. over the next four years, and builds on the company’s long history of investment in American innovation, advanced manufacturing, and next-generation recycling technologies. >“American innovation drives everything we do at Apple, and we’re proud to deepen our investment in the U.S. economy,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “Rare earth materials are essential for making advanced technology, and this partnership will help strengthen the supply of these vital materials here in the United States. We couldn’t be more excited about the future of American manufacturing, and we will continue to invest in the ingenuity, creativity, and innovative spirit of the American people.” >Apple and MP Materials will build out the state-of-the-art Texas factory with a series of neodymium magnet manufacturing lines specifically designed for Apple products. The new equipment and technical capacity will allow MP Materials to significantly boost its overall production. Once built, the American-made magnets will be shipped across the country and all over the world, helping to meet increasing global demand for the material. The increased production will support dozens of new jobs in advanced manufacturing and R&D. The two companies will provide extensive training to develop the workforce, building an entirely new pool of U.S. talent and expertise in magnet manufacturing. . . [Archive](https://archive.today/bfe27)

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[–] • 3 pts

Did you read the other day? All these new partnerships and mines/resources are being opened or developed, so the source materials are becoming available - that's a good step in the right direction. But the big piece of the puzzle that's still missing is the benefaction, concentration and separation of the constituent elements into their respective distinct metal oxides. Currently the majority of that processing occurs outside the US.

So the source material currently gets shipped overseas, concentrated and separated and then shipped back to the US so MP Materials can fabricate magnets at their new facility in Texas. The US hasn't purified rare earth oxides to any great extent since Molycorp shut down their solvent extraction and ion exchange circuits in the early 1990s. Believe they sold the ion exchange columns and resins at that time - might have been to Japan, but believe it was China.

The US once had a complete rare earth resource supply chain in place - including magnet production. It was sold off commencing in the mid 1980s.

[–] • 0 pt

I'd love to see purification processing stateside again. I thinkr the refiners faced a lot of environmental resistance because it is a messy process and IIRC that was a part of the "excuse" to get it out of America in the 1980s. The demand for rare earth's is skyrocketing compared to the 1980s.

[–] • 2 pts

Molycorp's environmental problems were of their own making. Yes California had stricter rules/laws than the US as a whole, but Molycorp did the bare minimum required for compliance - and fought that tooth and nail. When they had an effluent line break and a moderate spill ensued, there was zero good will remaining with the State - and they shut them down. In the mean time markets had continued to morph, China had ramped up production and their new owner (Chevron) took them to nearly mothball status as they weren't interested in mining. Selling the business to private equity 20+ years ago was perhaps the best decision made by management in decades.

[–] • 1 pt (edited )

I vaguely remember this story from +/-40 years ago - but I was far removed from it living in the sticks of Maine.

We have to revive the industry in order to generate a reliable supply in support of national defense and advancing technological superiority. It is far more obvious today thanit was back in the day.

[–] • 1 pt

Seems like some company needs to get involved in purification again