India to scale up rare earth magnet production to 5,000 tonnes by 2030

New Delhi, March 25 (IANS) India has accelerated efforts to expand domestic production of rare earth permanent magnets and exploration of critical minerals such as lithium, targeting production capacity of 5,000 tonnes by 2030, the government said on Wednesday.

The country’s current requirement of rare earth permanent magnets at about 4,000 tonnes is projected to rise to nearly 8,000 tonnes by 2030, highlighting the need for rapid expansion of domestic capabilities, MoS, Science & Technology, Earth Sciences, Dr. Jitendra Singh said in the Lok Sabha.

A pilot project on neodymium‑iron‑boron permanent magnets has been launched and a samarium‑cobalt magnet plant at Visakhapatnam has been made operational with an initial production capacity of 500 tonnes per year.

This capacity will be scaled up to 2,000 tonnes in the next phase and further to 5,000 tonnes by 2030, the Department of Atomic Energy said in a statement.

Regarding lithium reserves in Rajasthan’s Degana, the minister said that preliminary survey activities are underway, and further exploration is expected to begin soon, adding similar efforts are in progress in Reasi district of Jammu & Kashmir.

Dr Singh said that lithium and rare earth elements are critical for sectors such as electric vehicles, renewable energy, electronics, defence, aerospace, and space applications, and will play an important role in supporting clean energy transition as well as emerging technologies requiring reliable energy systems.

The government is working in close coordination across ministries to fast-track exploration and development of critical minerals, the minister said.

Policy measures, including provisions under the Atomic Energy (Amendment) framework, have opened exploration of several critical minerals to private sector participation, with safeguards in place for strategic resources such as uranium.

He also mentioned rare earth corridors being recently announced in Tamil Nadu, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, and Kerala to strengthen the domestic ecosystem for processing and value addition.

Rare earth elements are found both in beach sand minerals and rock formations, and their exploration requires different approaches depending on geological conditions. Rajasthan, Gujarat, and Jharkhand, have significant deposits of rock-based minerals which are relatively more complex to explore, the minister said.