Cyclic Materials opens US rare earth recycling plant in Mesa — SkimNews
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- Cyclic Materials opened its first commercial-scale rare earth magnet recycling facility in Mesa, Arizona, capable of processing up to 25,000 metric tons of magnet-bearing end-of-life products annually.
- The Mesa plant uses Cyclic's proprietary MagCycle technology, which mechanically separates magnets and yields a rare earth concentrate called Mag-Xtract alongside copper, aluminum, and steel.
- Cyclic Materials signed a deal with electronics recycler ERI in July, has already received more than 7,000 metric tons of feedstock, and expects to make its first commercial shipments to US customers later this month.
- CEO Ahmad Ghahreman said the facility gives the US new capacity to keep resource-rich products domestic and close gaps in the rare earth supply chain.
- The article notes global demand for rare earth elements is projected to triple by 2035, driven by automotive, energy, AI, robotics, electronics, and defense sectors, while the supply chain remains heavily concentrated in China.
- Cyclic Materials completed the Mesa plant 17 months after announcing it and is also developing a recycling campus in South Carolina, scheduled to open in 2028, that will combine magnet recovery and rare earth refining at a single site.
Why it matters: The Mesa plant adds up to 25,000 metric tons of annual US rare earth recycling capacity at a moment when demand is projected to triple by 2035 and China still dominates the supply chain, giving EV, wind turbine, and defense manufacturers a domestic source of recovered magnets and a hedge against Chinese export restrictions.
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