Highlights
- China dominates 70% of global NdPr oxide production, controlling nearly 90% of rare earth refining capacity.
- New international projects in Australia, Africa, and North America are emerging to challenge China’s rare earth monopoly.
- NdPr oxide is crucial for high-performance permanent magnets in clean energy and advanced technological applications.
Neodymium-Praseodymium (NdPr) oxide is one of the most critical rare earth materials in the modern economy, serving as the backbone for high-performance permanent magnets used in electric vehicles (EVs), wind turbines, robotics, and defense applications. The growing global push toward electrification and renewable energy has elevated NdPr to a strategic resource, with governments and industries scrambling to secure reliable supplies. However, the supply chain for NdPr remains highly concentrated, with China dominating the market while a handful of emerging producers attempt to challenge its near-monopoly.
Global Production and Dominant Suppliers
China is by far the world’s leading producer of NdPr oxide, controlling approximately 70% of global rare earth mining and an even more staggering 90% of refining and separation capacity. The bulk of China’s NdPr production comes from the Bayan Obo deposit in Inner Mongolia, the largest rare earth mine in the world. Other major Chinese sources include the South China ionic clay deposits, which are particularly rich in heavy rare earth elements (HREEs) but also produce significant quantities of NdPr.
Outside of China, Australia is the second-largest producer, with Lynas Rare Earths Ltd. (opens in a new tab) operating the Mount Weld mine in Western Australia, one of the richest rare earth deposits globally. Lynas ships its ore to Malaysia for processing at its Gebeng facility (opens in a new tab), underscoring the challenge many non-Chinese producers face: a lack of domestic refining capabilities.
The United States, despite once leading the rare earth industry, now lags significantly behind China. The Mountain Pass mine in California, owned by MP Materials (opens in a new tab), is the only major U.S. producer of rare earths, generating a significant share of NdPr. However, the ore mined at Mountain Pass is still largely shipped to China for processing, a vulnerability that the U.S. government is seeking to address with new investment in domestic refining capacity.
Other notable NdPr-producing nations include Myanmar, which supplies China with additional feedstock, as well as Vietnam and India, both of which have substantial reserves but limited production capacity. Brazil and Russia are also emerging as potential players, though they have yet to develop large-scale mining and refining operations.
Promising Deposits and Future Supply Sources
As demand for NdPrsurges, several new deposits around the world are being developed to challenge China’s dominance. One of the most promising is the Longonjo rare earth project in Angola (opens in a new tab), owned by Pensana Plc (opens in a new tab), which aims to become a major supplier of separated rare earth oxides to Western markets. In Canada, Vital Metals (opens in a new tab) is advancing its Nechalacho project (opens in a new tab) in the Northwest Territories, which has begun small-scale production and refining in Saskatchewan. Meanwhile, Arafura Resources (opens in a new tab) is pushing forward with its Nolans Bore project (opens in a new tab) in Australia, which is projected to become a significant supplier of NdPr once operational.
Africa is also emerging as an important player in the NdPr space, with Rainbow Rare Earths (opens in a new tab) developing the Phalaborwa deposit in South Africa and other companies exploring in Tanzania, Madagascar, and Namibia. Additionally, Greenland’s Kvanefjeld (opens in a new tab) project has long been considered a major rare earth resource, but political and environmental concerns have hindered its progress.
The NdPr Supply Chain: A Bottleneck at Refining
While NdPr is mined in multiple locations worldwide, the refining and separation process remains heavily concentrated in China, posing a major supply chain risk. The process of extracting NdPr from mixed rare earth concentrates is highly complex and requires advanced chemical separation techniques, which China has mastered over the past several decades. Western nations, particularly the U.S., Europe, and Australia, are now racing to develop their own processing facilities to break free from Chinese dependence.
Lynas Rare Earths is currently expanding its operations, constructing a new rare earths processing facility in Texas with funding from the U.S. Department of Defense. Similarly, MP Materials is building a domestic refining and magnet production capability in the U.S., which could mark the first step toward restoring an integrated rare earth supply chain outside of China.
What about NdPr Magnet Production?
However, even if refining capacity is expanded, another challenge remains: NdPr magnet production. Today, China dominates the production of NdFeB (neodymium-iron-boron) permanent magnets, which are essential for everything from Tesla’s electric motors to fighter jet guidance systems. Japan’s Hitachi Metals and a few other companies hold key patents on NdFeB production, but Chinese firms like Jingci Material Science and Beijing Zhong Ke San Huan have taken the lead in mass production.
The Future of NdPr: Geopolitics, Demand, and Supply Security
The race to secure stable NdPr supply chains is intensifying as geopolitical tensions rise between China and the West. Given the critical role of NdPr in defense and clean energy technologies, governments are increasingly viewing rare earths as a matter of national security rather than just industrial supply. The European Union has launched the Critical Raw Materials Act, while the U.S. has enacted executive orders aimed at securing domestic production of rare earths, including NdPr. Australia, Japan, and South Korea are also investing in diversification strategies to reduce their dependence on Chinese supply.
Despite these efforts, China still holds key advantages in both refining expertise and economies of scale. Even with new projects coming online, breaking Beijing’s control of the NdPr market will require not only more mining but also massive investments in refining, alloy production, and magnet manufacturing. Until then, the global supply chain remains vulnerable to potential Chinese export restrictions, price manipulation, or geopolitical conflicts.
Conclusion: A Critical Resource for the Future
Neodymium-Praseodymium oxide is at the heart of the global rare earth industry, powering the technologies that will define the 21st century, from electric vehicles to advanced defense systems. While China remains the undisputed leader in NdPr production and processing, new sources are emerging in Australia, Africa, and North America.
However, without significant investment in refining and magnet manufacturing outside of China, the West will remain dependent on Beijing’s dominance. As nations seek to secure their supply chains, the future of NdPr will be shaped by geopolitics, technological innovation, and the relentless demand for high-performance materials in the clean energy revolution.
Daniel
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