REalloys and U.S. Critical Materials Corp have formalised an initial agreement to create an entirely domestic supply chain for rare earth elements in the United States, signalling a joint effort aligned with Washington's stated goal of reducing dependence on Chinese sources of these materials.
Under the memorandum of understanding, REalloys will secure up to 10% offtake from the Sheep Creek rare earth deposit in Ravalli County, Montana, which is owned by U.S. Critical Materials. The Sheep Creek deposit contains notable concentrations of heavy rare earth elements such as dysprosium and terbium.
Those elements are used in high-performance permanent magnets, the companies said, and have applications in F-35 fighter aircraft, missile guidance systems and radar platforms. The presence of dysprosium and terbium in Sheep Creek therefore underpins the strategic nature of the deposit for defence-oriented end uses.
REalloys' chief executive, Lipi Sternheim, framed the agreement as part of a broader effort to assemble assets that integrate with REalloys' midstream and downstream capabilities. "We are identifying the strategic assets that plug into our advanced midstream and downstream ecosystem to fortify supply chain security for protected and strategic markets, with zero Chinese involvement at any stage," Sternheim said.
As part of the partnership, the companies will advance test work intended to improve processing techniques for heavy rare earths. They also said they will pursue a finalized long-term offtake arrangement within one year of the memorandum.
The memorandum comes amid an escalation of U.S. policy measures aimed at curbing reliance on China for critical materials. Those measures include tighter procurement rules, which the article says have prompted a wave of activity among miners and processors looking to establish domestic rare earth supply chains.
The agreement as described limits involvement to the two named firms and the Sheep Creek deposit; it sets out near-term technical work on processing and a one-year timeline to negotiate long-term offtake terms, while identifying defence-related end uses for the deposit's heavy rare earth content.