A colorful collection of different minerals in pulverized piles
NEODYMIUM: Abundant in the Earth’s crust, this rare earth element is difficult to find in concentrated, mineable forms and is a soft, malleable, silvery-white metal. It’s one of the strongest magnetic materials when alloyed with other metals. APPLICATIONS: Demand is rising sharply because Neodymium is essential for high-performance magnets, especially Permanent magnets as neodymium-iron-boron (NdFeB), which are used in EV motors, wind turbine generators, defense systems, and MRI machines. Also used to color glass and ceramics, found in lasers, electronics, and optics. SOURCING: High quality Neodymium supplies is most geographically concentrated in, China, where the U.S. sources most of its imports. Smaller volumes come from Japan, South Korea, and the EU. EXIM INVOLVEMENT: EXIM issued a Letter of Interest for up to $800 million in debt financing to NioCorp under the Make More in America (MMIA) initiative for it’s Elk Creek Project in southeast Nebraska, which aims to produce rare earth elements, including neodymium—an important component in NdFeB magnets used in electric vehicles, wind turbines, and defense technologies.

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