Wheel loaders fill trucks with ore at the MP Materials rare earth mine in Mountain Pass, Calif., on Jan. 30, 2020. Steve Marcus/Reuters
MP Materials Corp. announced on July 10 what it called a “transformational public-private partnership” with the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) to build out the nation’s rare earth magnet supply chain and reduce U.S. dependency on China and other countries.
According to MP Materials and DOD officials, the multibillion-dollar investment package and long-term commitments will enable the Las Vegas-based rare earths miner to build a second comprehensive, end-to-end domestic magnet manufacturing plant, called “10X Facility,” at a location to be chosen soon, serving both defense and commercial markets.
