ReElement Technologies Accelerates U.S. Rare Earth and Critical Mineral Refining Momentum

Highlights

• ReElement Technologies achieved a breakthrough by producing >99.9% pure samarium from recycled feedstock, a critical capability for defense-grade SmCo magnets that remains scarce outside China.
• The company secured $200 million in strategic equity funding from Transition Equity Partners and launched the world's first utility token for critical minerals traceability with SAGINT.
• ReElement's Marion, Indiana Supersite advances U.S. midstream refining capacity while Electrified Materials Corporation began shipping end-of-life lithium-ion batteries for circular supply chains.

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Noblesville, Indiana-based ReElement Technologies (opens in a new tab) opened 2026 with a series of operational and strategic milestones that underscore its growing role in rebuilding domestic and allied refining capacity for rare earths and critical minerals, according to a January update from CEO Mark Jensen (opens in a new tab).

Rare Earth Refining in America’s Midwest

Most notably, ReElement achieved a refining breakthrough by producing >99.9% pure samarium from customer-provided recycled feedstock—a critical step toward reliable SmCo magnet-grade materials used in defense and advanced industrial applications where high heat tolerance is essential. Samarium refining at this purity level remains scarce outside China, making the result commercially and strategically significant.

The company also announced a traceability milestone with SAGINT, minting what itdescribes as the world’s first utility token for criticalminerals, starting with neodymium oxide. The system is designed to enable tamper-resistant provenance, auditability, and DFARS-ready compliance, directly addressing one of the U.S. defense supply chain’s most persistent blind spots. Jensen informed Rare Earth Exchanges™ in a critique of one of our more critical articles that this token is of vital importance for defense-related customers.

Note on the topic of no U.S. price floors, Jensen went on the record online that none are needed for competitors such as ReElement.

On the capital front, ReElement secured a $200 million strategic equity facility from Transition Equity Partners to accelerate commercial deployment, anchored by its Marion, Indiana, Supersite. The funding materially strengthens the company’s ability to scale its multi-mineral, multi-feedstock refining platform at a time when U.S. policymakers are prioritizing onshore processing capacity.

 ReElement’s momentum was reinforced by a high-level site visit from Indiana Governor Mike Braun (opens in a new tab) and Secretary of Commerce David J. Adams (opens in a new tab), signaling growing state-level alignment with federal critical mineral and defense supply chain objectives.

Finally, through affiliate Electrified Materials Corporation (opens in a new tab), the company commenced shipments of end-of-life lithium-ion batteries, advancing a circular, U.S.-based battery materials supply chain.

ReElement executives will engage global partners and media at Mining Indaba (Feb. 9–12, Cape Town).

Rare EarthExchanges has reported that ReElement Technologies represents one of the key emerging mine-to-magnet supply chains in the USA. In this company’s case, they focus on the midstream—recycling and refining—the true bottleneck in the West.