Highlights

• Rare earth permanent magnets are crucial for green energy technologies like wind turbines and electric vehicles.
• China controls over 85% of rare earth oxide processing, creating significant global supply chain vulnerabilities.
• Sustainable production and international collaboration are essential to mitigate environmental and geopolitical challenges in rare earth magnet supply.

In a groundbreaking review published in Resources, Conservation and Recycling (opens in a new tab) (Vol. 212, January 2025, 107966), lead author Yousef Ghorbani of the University of Lincoln, along with I.M.S.K. Ilankoon from Monash University Malaysia, Nimila Dushyantha from Uva Wellassa University, and Glen T. Nwaila from the University of the Witwatersrand, argue that rare earth permanent magnets are the linchpin of our green energy future—but their production is mired in crippling bottlenecks. The authors hypothesize that while rare earth element-based magnets are indispensable for powering wind turbines and electric vehicles, the entire supply chain—from ore extraction to recycling—is constrained by factors such as China’s monopolistic production, severe environmental impacts, market volatility, and technical performance challenges like temperature stability and corrosion resistance.

The review systematically analyzed thousands of publications from Scopus and Web of Science, revealing that global production of rare earth oxides is overwhelmingly concentrated in China, which controls over 85% of processing capacity. This imbalance creates supply chain vulnerabilities and drives up costs and fuels geopolitical tensions, given there is no proper functioning capitalistic market.

The authors highlight promising developments, such as alternative magnet materials, advanced extraction technologies, and recycling strategies—particularly long-loop recycling—in the paper to mitigate environmental damage and diversify supply.

However, as a review, it depends on preexisting literature that might not capture the latest field data, and it glosses over region-specific challenges that could affect implementation.

Regardless, the study delivers a hard-hitting message: without international collaboration and innovative, sustainable production methods, our clean energy transition remains at risk, locked behind supply chain domination and environmental pitfalls. The authors do not introduce the second rise of Trump, “drill baby drill,” and the American reversion back to a hydrocarbon-first mindset. How will this impact the highly challenged and one-sided rare earth element markets?