The G7 has issued three 'no-go' demands toward China: (1) China must not support Russia; (2) China must not use force against Taiwan; and (3) China must not restrict rare earth exports. What do people think?

Among these efforts, Australia’s Lynas Corporation plays a pivotal role through its separation plant in Malaysia. In recent years, this facility has continuously expanded its production capacity, rapidly increasing the number of commercially produced rare earth elements. An ever-growing range of its products is entering markets in the United States, Japan, and elsewhere—providing Western supply chains with new sources. Meanwhile, U.S.-based MP Materials is steadily completing its vertically integrated layout—from mining to magnet manufacturing; Japan has long invested in rare earth resources across Australia, Vietnam, and Malaysia to diversify supply risks; and Europe has introduced policies such as the Critical Raw Materials Act to accelerate domestic supply chain development. In essence, over the past several years, Western countries have not pursued isolated mining projects alone, but rather a comprehensive industrial policy spanning mine development, separation and refining, metal smelting, magnet manufacturing, and end-user procurement. Of course, this does not mean China has lost its competitive edge. Whether in heavy rare earth separation technology, ultra-high-performance magnet manufacturing, complete industrial supporting capabilities, or production costs, China still maintains global leadership. However, it must be acknowledged that the West’s biggest historical weakness—the gap in its industrial chain—is steadily narrowing. Therefore, clinging to the outdated notion that "China’s resource advantage makes it impossible for the West to build independent supply chains" can no longer adequately explain the realities of recent industrial developments. What truly warrants attention is not whether the West can fully decouple from China, but rather how it is steadily raising its supply chain autonomy—gradually transforming a system once overwhelmingly dependent on China into a tripartite structure comprising "supply from China + supply from allies + domestic supply." This also implies that future global competition over rare earths will increasingly center on supply chain resilience—not merely on raw resource reserves. III. Can South Korea’s downstream advantages in rare earths and Canada’s upstream resources combine to form a complete Western rare earth industrial chain? From an industrial chain perspective, the cooperation between REalloys and JS Link exhibits strong complementarity. REalloys holds the Hoidas Lake rare earth project in Saskatchewan, Canada, and possesses key technologies such as heavy rare earth metalization. Simultaneously, the company is collaborating with the U.S. Department of Defense to assess building rare earth processing facilities and advance certification for defense-grade heavy rare earth materials—aiming to meet future U.S. defense procurement requirements. As the U.S. updates its Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS), defense procurement rules for critical minerals are becoming increasingly stringent—meaning enterprises compliant with U.S. domestic supply chain requirements will gain greater market access. Meanwhile, REalloys has secured approximately USD 100 million in financing and received a letter of intent for up to USD 200 million in financing support from the U.S. Export-Import Bank—providing robust financial backing for subsequent construction. By contrast, JS Link’s greatest strength lies downstream. The company has extensive experience manufacturing high-performance permanent magnets in South Korea and is simultaneously expanding production capacity at its U.S. and Malaysian factories. It is currently one of only a few enterprises outside China capable of mass-producing permanent magnets. Following their collaboration, upstream resources, separation and refining, metalization, and magnet manufacturing can collectively form a relatively complete industrial closed loop. Hence, REalloys’ management describes this partnership as a crucial opportunity to build "one of only a few fully integrated, non-Chinese magnet supply chains."

Starting in 2027, the U.S. will ban defense-system procurement of rare earth metals originating from China. Can the U.S. actually deliver on this pledge?

Stephen Dumont, Chairman of REalloys, stated: “Establishing heavy rare earth metal production on U.S. soil marks a decisive moment for North American industrial strategy. The Ohio facility will establish metalization capability—linking Canadian oxide production with U.S. magnet manufacturing. This is a critical step the West has never achieved at scale before. This is not a pilot plant—it will be full-scale commercial capacity, fully compliant with Title 50 defense procurement requirements. This is how we rebuild supply sovereignty from scratch.” 1. REalloys—The Precision Phase of Supply Chain Reconstruction Rare earth oxides—the powdered output of separation processes—cannot be used directly in manufacturing. Before magnets can be produced, these oxides must undergo chemical reduction into pure metals and be blended into precisely formulated alloys, serving as raw material for permanent magnet production. This step requires tightly controlled reactions, high-temperature furnaces, and sophisticated process control systems capable of maintaining stable yields and purity across multiple rare earth elements. For three to four decades, such advanced rare earth refining and transformation has occurred almost exclusively within China. Over the past two years, REalloys has begun rebuilding this capability in Ohio, USA. Its facility in Euclid converts rare earth oxides into finished rare earth metals and magnet alloys for defense contractors and advanced manufacturers. Currently, REalloys is the only company in North America operating active heavy rare earth metal refining capacity. Tim Johnston, Co-Founder of REalloys, remarked: “Refining is the weakest link in the rare earth value chain outside China. It demands deep operational expertise and process control systems capable of managing complex, continuously variable production parameters.” And REalloys—possessing exactly this capability—is significantly expanding it. The company has announced plans to build the largest heavy rare earth metal refining platform outside China, capable of converting rare earth oxides into approximately 6,000 metric tons annually of high-purity heavy rare earth metals—including neodymium, gadolinium, filler metals for brazing, and alkaline-earth metal barium. These metals constitute the core raw materials for permanent magnets used in electric motors, radar systems, drones, missile guidance systems, and advanced industrial machinery. REalloys is partnering with the Saskatchewan Research Council (SRC) to expand this initiative. SRC is constructing North America’s first fully integrated commercial rare earth processing facility in Saskatoon. Under the agreement, REalloys will fund upgrades to the facility and secure rights to most of its output—including high-purity neodymium-dysprosium metals and neodymium and ammonium oxides for high-temperature defense magnets. After processing in Canada, these materials will be shipped to Ohio for metalization refining and alloying—forming one of the earliest fully linked rare earth supply chains, connecting Canadian rare earth processing with U.S. manufacturing. When the plan was announced, many considered it extremely difficult. Even under ideal conditions, replicating heavy rare earth metalization capability could take years. Yet in reality, REalloys’ collaboration with Saskatchewan has progressed remarkably smoothly—and they have already overcome the hardest part: proving via trial production that rare earth metal refining and alloying can be successfully conducted in North America, meeting exact specifications required by real customers. REalloys’ ambitions extend even further downstream. The company is also developing a large-scale permanent magnet manufacturing facility, with Phase I targeting annual production of 3,000 metric tons of NdFeB magnets—and eventual capacity reaching approximately 18,000 metric tons.

U.S. Army and REalloys Ink Term Sheet for Rare Earth Processing Facility at Tooele Army Depot

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The U.S. Army and REalloys Inc. signed a non-binding term sheet to explore building a heavy rare earth processing facility at Tooele Army Depot in Utah. The project aims to secure domestic supply chains for critical minerals like dysprosium and terbium by 2029 or 2030.

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