Highlights

• ReElement Technologies produces >99.9% pure samarium from recycled feedstock—a critical technical milestone for U.S. rare earth midstream refining and defense supply chain resilience.
• Samarium-cobalt magnets remain essential for precision-guided munitions, aerospace actuators, and high-temperature applications where neodymium magnets fail.
• While the technical achievement is solid, key details needed include:
  • Production volumes
  • Customer contracts
  • Cost curves
  • Timelines for scaling beyond protocol validation

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ReElement Technologies’ (opens in a new tab) announcement that it has produced >99.9% pure samarium from recycled feedstock is a real technical milestone—and one worth acknowledging. Samarium is not a headline rare earth like neodymium, but it is strategically critical. Samarium-cobalt (SmCo) magnets remain indispensable in defense, aerospace, and high-temperature environments where NdFeB magnets fail. Any credible U.S. midstream capability here matters.

American Resources Corporation, which holds a minority stake in ReElement Technologies, issued the press release. Some key use cases for SmCo magnets:

Use Cases	Summary
Precision‑guided munitions	Requiring stable magnetic performance under high heat and rapid acceleration
Aircraft and missile actuators	That must operate flawlessly in extreme thermal and mechanical environments
Secure communications systems	Where magnetic stability ensures signal integrity and reliability
High‑temperature motors, generators, and sensors	Used in hypersonic systems, jet engines, and space applications
Aerospace and satellite platforms	Where radiation resistance and long‑term durability are essential

From a Rare Earth Exchanges™ perspective, ReElement occupies an important niche in the U.S. economy: midstream refining plus recycling, where the U.S. is weakest. The company’s emphasis on recycled feedstock, modular deployment, and solvent-free processing aligns well with near-term defense needs and longer-term industrial resilience. Producing >99.9% purity is not trivial, particularly from heterogeneous recycled inputs. Credit where due.

CEO Mark Jensen (opens in a new tab) has put everything on the line to help the nation build resilience in supply chains, and for that, we’ll continue to celebrate him and his team’s key milestones while calling out where we need more.

Mark Jensen, CEO

As the U.S. works toward rare earth supply-chain resilience, Rare Earth Exchanges™ expects Jensen to remain a meaningful participant in that effort, particularly at the midstream and recycling layer, which happen to be major weak points in the value chain.

What’s Solid—and What’s Vague

The press release is strongest on technical narrative and strategic intent. ReElement claims internally developed flow sheets, multi-feedstock flexibility, and cost-efficient processing—plausible, and consistent with what the company has previously demonstrated at pilot and early commercial scale. We sincerely hope the team is lining up sales now.

Some key items for the company to report on in the future:

• Disclosed production volumes  (kg/month or annualized capacity).
• Customer contracts named, even on a non-binding basis.
• Report yield, recovery rate, or throughput data provided.
• Share more of the cost curve
• A timeline for scaling Sm production beyond protocol validation.

Importantly, ReElement is privately held and does not have the same disclosure requirements as publicly held firms. Key over time for the company is to share with the public more details, showing as they scale into an economically meaningful production line.

Recycling Is the Right Door—but Not the Whole House

ReElement correctly frames recycled feedstock as a way to address near-term supply gaps. That is realistic. Rare Earth Exchanges™ also points out that recycled samarium volumes globally are limited.

Other dynamics Jensen and the team can share in the future involve feedstock sufficiency, competition for scrap, plus how recycled inputs scale relative to defense demand.

Also, how does samarium fit into a broader separated-REE slate? Sm rarely travels alone. Does this flow sheet integrate with praseodymium, neodymium, or heavy REEs—or is it a single-element solution? 

Bottom Line for Investors

ReElement Technologies should be commended for pushing the effort. A credible technical step forward. The announced achievement appears to reflect validation of commercial processing protocols rather than sustained, nameplate-capacity production.

ReElement strengthens its case as a necessary—but not yet fully sufficient—pillar of U.S. rare earth resilience. Some of the next milestones that matter: named customers, contracted volumes, unit economics, and sustained output—REEx will amplify such important news for our rapidly growing community of investors.

Source: ACCESS Newswire, January 20, 2026 — American Resources Corporation / ReElement Technologies