Element 17

Element 17

China owns mine-to-magnet. One Utah company just bet $1.9 billion it can build the same.

Jun 26, 2026

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5 min read

China owns mine-to-magnet. One Utah company just bet $1.9 billion it can build the same.

Terbium trades at $1,406/kg outside China against $970 inside — a $436 spread that measures exactly how squeezed non-Chinese buyers are right now.

China Blacklisted the Two Companies America Built to Escape Its Supply Chain

Jun 24, 2026

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4 min read

China Blacklisted the Two Companies America Built to Escape Its Supply Chain

In 2010 Beijing turned off rare earth shipments to Japan over a fishing boat. This week it aimed the same weapon at the Pentagon-backed firms built to make that impossible.

The Pentagon Bans Chinese Magnets in January. Congress Just Introduced Its Answer.

Jun 22, 2026

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4 min read

The Pentagon Bans Chinese Magnets in January. Congress Just Introduced Its Answer.

A bipartisan bill covers every link — oxide, separation, finished magnets, rare-earth-free alternatives. $1.7 billion is already committed.

The Pentagon just put $500 million behind the rare earth step that killed Molycorp

Jun 19, 2026

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4 min read

The Pentagon just put $500 million behind the rare earth step that killed Molycorp

Phoenix Tailings will build the Freedom Facility in Massachusetts — taking ore in, shipping pure metals out, and keeping China out of the middle.

China's Rare Earth Truce Expires in 146 Days. The G7 Just Set a 2030 Target. Here's the Gap.

Jun 17, 2026

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5 min read

China's Rare Earth Truce Expires in 146 Days. The G7 Just Set a 2030 Target. Here's the Gap.

G7 leaders agreed at Évian that no single country should supply more than 60% of their critical mineral imports. China currently supplies more than that. The Pentagon just bet $500 million on the midstream solution.

The Strait of Hormuz Reopens This Week. The Rare Earth Emergency Was Never About Iran.

Jun 15, 2026

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5 min read

The Strait of Hormuz Reopens This Week. The Rare Earth Emergency Was Never About Iran.

The war that disrupted sulfuric acid markets for 104 days is ending. The G7 summit that opens today in Évian — and the Pentagon's January deadline — are about something else entirely.

In 2003, G7 Leaders Met at This Hotel and Didn't Mention Rare Earths Once. They Reconvene in Three Days.

Jun 12, 2026

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5 min read

In 2003, G7 Leaders Met at This Hotel and Didn't Mention Rare Earths Once. They Reconvene in Three Days.

The 52nd G7 Summit in Évian opens Monday. For the first time, a formal outcome document on rare earth and critical mineral supply chains is expected.

Mountain Pass Went Dark in 2015. The Same Mine Is About to Produce Dysprosium and Terbium for the First Time.

Jun 10, 2026

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5 min read

Mountain Pass Went Dark in 2015. The Same Mine Is About to Produce Dysprosium and Terbium for the First Time.

Eleven years after Molycorp's bankruptcy ended America's last rare earth attempt, Mountain Pass is commissioning the heavy rare earth separation circuit the US has never had.

China's Rare Earth Truce Expires in 155 Days. The Pentagon Magnet Ban Hits 51 Days Later.

Jun 8, 2026

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5 min read

China's Rare Earth Truce Expires in 155 Days. The Pentagon Magnet Ban Hits 51 Days Later.

Two deadlines. One 70-day window. Here's what this week's news looks like against the clock.

The GAO Said in 2010 That Rebuilding US Rare Earths Would Take 15 Years. It's Been 16.

Jun 5, 2026

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5 min read

The GAO Said in 2010 That Rebuilding US Rare Earths Would Take 15 Years. It's Been 16.

This week, US rare earth companies committed $3 billion in new infrastructure in four working days. The clock ran out. The buildout is just starting.

The Pentagon's Rare Earth Magnet Ban Is 211 Days Away

Jun 3, 2026

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5 min read

The Pentagon's Rare Earth Magnet Ban Is 211 Days Away

On January 1, 2027, Chinese magnets get banned from US weapons systems. The US makes 0.3% of the world's NdFeB magnets. Plus: USA Rare Earth's third plant in five months.

USA Rare Earth Got Sued on Friday. On Monday They Were in Paris With a Check

Jun 1, 2026

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4 min read

USA Rare Earth Got Sued on Friday. On Monday They Were in Paris With a Check

The €175M France expansion lands the same week MP Materials filed for magnet IP theft. Plus Japan mining rare earth mud from six kilometers under the Pacific.

The Two US Magnet Companies Are Now Suing Each Other

May 29, 2026

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5 min read

The Two US Magnet Companies Are Now Suing Each Other

China makes 94% of NdFeB magnets. America makes 0.3%. And the 0.3% just landed in Texas state court.

May 27, 2026

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4 min read

The Quad Just Became a Buyers' Club

Four countries, $20 billion, one shared problem: China refines 90% of the rare earths the modern economy runs on.

Japan Hasn't Imported Terbium Since December

May 25, 2026

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4 min read

Japan Hasn't Imported Terbium Since December

Reuters broke the story Friday. The 2010 playbook, run again — with more leverage.

The One Word China Used After the Summit Changes Everything

May 23, 2026

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5 min read

The One Word China Used After the Summit Changes Everything

Fifty years after Nixon opened the door to China, the West is discovering how hard it is to unwind a dependency Beijing spent decades building — and one carefully chosen word from this week’s summit reveals exactly where things stand.

The Pentagon’s Drone Plan Has One Massive Problem

May 22, 2026

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5 min read

The Pentagon’s Drone Plan Has One Massive Problem

America just ordered tens of thousands of attack drones for the wars of the future — but nearly every critical magnet inside them still depends on a supply chain China controls.

He flew 7,000 miles for rare earths. China gave him a word.

May 21, 2026

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4 min read

He flew 7,000 miles for rare earths. China gave him a word.

The word was "address." Not a deal, not a timeline, not a single ton of dysprosium — just a verb designed to sound like progress. Meanwhile, China's own summary of the summit didn't mention rare earths at all. Exports of the heavy metals that keep EV magnets working and missiles flying are still running 50% below pre-control levels. And in the background, two deadlines are ticking: November 10, when the tariff truce expires, and January 1, when the Pentagon bans Chinese magnets from every American weapons system.

Eight months. That's all the Pentagon has left.

May 19, 2026

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4 min read

Eight months. That's all the Pentagon has left.

On January 1, 2027, every Chinese-origin rare earth magnet gets banned from American weapons systems — all the way back to the mine. An F-35 holds 900 pounds of the stuff. A Virginia-class submarine needs 9,200. Lockheed and Northrop are already scrambling to certify their supply chains. The problem: China still refines 90% of the world's rare earths, and the only Western company separating the heavy ones produced 8 tons last quarter. The world needs thousands.

Element 17

China owns mine-to-magnet. One Utah company just bet $1.9 billion it can build the same.

China Blacklisted the Two Companies America Built to Escape Its Supply Chain

The Pentagon Bans Chinese Magnets in January. Congress Just Introduced Its Answer.

The Pentagon just put $500 million behind the rare earth step that killed Molycorp

China's Rare Earth Truce Expires in 146 Days. The G7 Just Set a 2030 Target. Here's the Gap.

The Strait of Hormuz Reopens This Week. The Rare Earth Emergency Was Never About Iran.

In 2003, G7 Leaders Met at This Hotel and Didn't Mention Rare Earths Once. They Reconvene in Three Days.

Mountain Pass Went Dark in 2015. The Same Mine Is About to Produce Dysprosium and Terbium for the First Time.

China's Rare Earth Truce Expires in 155 Days. The Pentagon Magnet Ban Hits 51 Days Later.

The GAO Said in 2010 That Rebuilding US Rare Earths Would Take 15 Years. It's Been 16.

The Pentagon's Rare Earth Magnet Ban Is 211 Days Away

USA Rare Earth Got Sued on Friday. On Monday They Were in Paris With a Check

The Two US Magnet Companies Are Now Suing Each Other

The Quad Just Became a Buyers' Club

Japan Hasn't Imported Terbium Since December

The One Word China Used After the Summit Changes Everything

The Pentagon’s Drone Plan Has One Massive Problem

He flew 7,000 miles for rare earths. China gave him a word.

Eight months. That's all the Pentagon has left.

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