American Rare Earths Partnered With Novex on U.S. Facility
The firms will co-design a plant to process Halleck Creek oxides into magnet precursor metals.
Updated on Sept. 28, 2026 in Manufacturing
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American Rare Earths has signed a memorandum of understanding with Novex to co-design a metal production facility in the United States. The initiative aims to convert rare earth oxides from the Wyoming-based Halleck Creek project into metals for permanent magnets.
Why it matters
The partnership seeks to establish a fully domestic mine-to-magnet supply chain, reducing reliance on foreign processing for critical materials. By localizing production, the firms intend to address recovery and purity challenges for high-demand elements.
The agreement focuses on processing 5 rare earth elements, including NdPr, Tb, Dy, Sm, and Y, to improve recovery and purity rates. The collaboration aims to scale these materials from the Halleck Creek demonstration plant into commercially viable magnet precursor metals.
The players
American Rare Earths
A mineral exploration and development company focused on advancing rare earth mining projects in North America.
Novex
A processing technology firm specializing in the refinement and purity improvement of mineral concentrates.
The details
Novex is tasked with improving recovery and purity rates for the specified rare earth elements extracted from the Halleck Creek project. The companies will jointly design a production facility to transform these oxides into magnet-ready metals. This effort represents a strategic move to create an integrated, U.S.-based supply chain for the permanent magnet sector.
Timeline
September 28, 2026
Market Landscape
This initiative aligns with the Department of Energy's domestic rare earth supply chain objectives aimed at strengthening U.S. manufacturing resilience. It reflects an industry-wide pivot toward vertically integrated production to bypass global supply bottlenecks.
Operators in the magnet and electronics sectors should monitor this project as a signal of potential future domestic supply capacity for critical rare earth metals. Organizations dependent on magnet precursors should assess their reliance on international supply chains ahead of planned domestic capacity increases.
The takeaway
The move underscores the growing operational focus on securing U.S.-based mineral processing to stabilize magnet manufacturing costs. Managers should track development milestones at the Halleck Creek site as a leading indicator of regional capacity to meet future demand for high-purity rare earth oxides.
Further reading
For more on local industrial development, see our coverage of Manufacturing.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Metal.
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