American Rare Earths Limited (ASX: ARR) announced on 17 August 2026 that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Novex, LLC, a United States rare earth metallurgy and metallisation company. The agreement, facilitated through ARR’s wholly owned subsidiary Wyoming Rare (USA) Inc., aims to advance U.S. oxide-to-metal production, specifically converting separated rare earth oxides from the Halleck Creek Project in Wyoming into the metals required for permanent magnets. American Rare Earths is a critical minerals company at the forefront of reshaping the U.S. rare earths industry, advancing the Halleck Creek Project in Wyoming, which holds a world-class rare earth deposit. Novex, LLC, is a U.S.-based advanced materials company specialising in critical-element and rare-earth metallurgy.
This strategic partnership addresses a critical “chokepoint” in the mine-to-magnet supply chain, as magnet manufacturers typically require metal and alloy, not oxide, and this conversion process is largely controlled by China. The U.S. Department of Defence mandates that from 1 January 2027, defence contractors will be prohibited from using magnets containing rare earth elements mined, refined, or separated in China. Consequently, developing domestic metallisation capability has become both a national security imperative and a commercial opportunity for the U.S. The objective of this collaboration is to establish a fully domestic U.S. mine-to-magnet supply chain.
The MoU outlines several key areas of cooperation, including process optimisation for rare earth elements from Halleck Creek ore, the metallisation of neodymium-praseodymium (NdPr) oxide from ARR’s demonstration plant into magnet precursor metal, and the joint design of a domestic rare earth metal production facility to be built by American Rare Earths. This follows the company’s internal technology review, which identified high-temperature molten salt electrolysis as the cleanest metallisation route. Novex brings extensive experience in developing such technologies under programs funded by the U.S. Department of Energy and U.S. Department of War. The parties intend to work towards a definitive long-term agreement within 12 months.
