Anthony Balladon
Coverage of Anthony Balladon in the Nexus archive.
- America’s $500 million bet on rare earths depends on a tiny New Hampshire refinery scaling from 200 kg to 120 tonnes in 2 years
Phoenix Tailings, a New Hampshire refinery, aims to scale production from 200 kg to 120 tonnes of critical rare earth elements within two years using a $500 million Pentagon loan. The expansion targets strengthening the U.S. supply chain for defense and industrial minerals, reducing reliance on China's processing dominance.
- US faces new pressure to build weapons without China's rare earth magnets
The U.S. is under pressure to develop domestic rare earth mineral processing to reduce reliance on China, with Phoenix Tailings in New Hampshire working to extract critical elements from mining waste and recycled materials. The Pentagon has approved a $500 million loan to expand the company's capacity, as defense systems like Tomahawk missiles and F-35 jets require these minerals, and stricter sourcing rules aim to exclude Chinese components.
- US faces new pressure to build weapons without China's rare earth magnets
The U.S. is accelerating efforts to reduce reliance on China for rare earth minerals critical to defense systems, with Phoenix Tailings in New Hampshire working to extract elements like neodymium and dysprosium from mining waste. A $500 million Pentagon loan aims to expand the company's production capacity, addressing urgent military needs amid the Middle East war depleting munitions stocks.