The plant will boost the company’s total output by 50 percent.
On Tuesday, Chinese magnet producer JL Mag announced plans to construct a new production facility worth $143.6 million (CNY1 billion). According to the state-affiliated Chinese news outlet Yicai, the plant will be located in Baotou, within the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. This would help streamline supply chains as Baotou is also home to one of China’s rare earth mining hubs, including the world’s largest rare earth mine, Bayan Obo. The plant will have an annual production capacity of 20,000 tons of magnetic rare earth material, boosting the company’s total capacity by 50 percent. Construction is estimated to take two years.
JL Mag is one of the world’s largest producers of rare earth magnets, serving key industries such as automotive manufacturing, air conditioning, and the wind power sector. As the world’s leading player, China accounts for approximately 90% of global rare earth magnet production, leaving the rest of the world heavily reliant on imports of these key components. Other countries are stepping up efforts to diversify supply chains and reduce dependency on China to address this imbalance. For instance, Brazil recently began developing South America’s first magnet production facility (nous avons rapporté). Additionally, Neo Performance Materials, a Canadian critical minerals company, is building a magnet manufacturing facility in Estonia.
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