MP Materials, which runs the only American rare earths mine, announced a new $500 million agreement with tech giant Apple to produce more of the powerful magnets used in iPhones as well as other high-tech products like electric vehicles.
MP Materials, which runs the only American rare earths mine, announced a new $500 million agreement with tech giant Apple on Tuesday to produce more of the powerful magnets used in iPhones as well as other high-tech products like electric vehicles.
This news comes on the heels of last week’s announcement that the U.S. Defense Department agreed to invest $400 million in shares of the Las Vegas-based company, establish a floor for the price of key elements and ensure that all of the magnets made at a new plant in the first 10 years are purchased.
That unusual direct investment in the company makes the government the largest shareholder in MP Materials.
“This is the kind of long-term commitment needed to reshape global rare earth supply chains,” Neha Mukherjee, a rare earths analyst with Benchmark Mineral Intelligence, said in a research note on the Pentagon deal.
Rare earths are a key concern in ongoing U.S. trade talks. China dominates the market and imposed new limits on exports after President Donald Trump announced his widespread tariffs. When shipments dried up, the two sides sat down in London.
Despite their name, the 17 rare earth elements aren’t actually rare, but it’s hard to find them in a high enough concentration to make a mine worth the investment.
