Developing the North American permanent magnet supply chain for energy technologies:
Industry and government perspectives

This panel discussion will focus on both government and industry efforts to develop a robust North American supply chain of permanent magnets to support the energy sector industrial base (ESIB). Rare earth magnets, such as sintered neodymium-iron-boron (NdFeB) magnets, are especially important to the ESIB as they are critical components of traction motors in electric vehicles and direct drive generators in offshore wind turbines. Yet, nearly all supply chain stages of sintered NeFeB magnets are concentrated in China, posing a potential vulnerability for ESIB supply chains required to meet climate goals.

Featuring key industry players and decision makers from the U.S. government charged with enhancing the resilience of domestic energy supply chains, the discussion will cover:

Challenges associated with bringing the sintered NdFeB industry to the United States;
Government and industry strategies to secure critical materials and enhance competitiveness
How government and industry players work together to develop a domestic permanent magnet supply chain to support energy technologies
The various roles the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) plays in this regard;
How efforts within the United States compare with efforts in other countries
Technology transfer and commercialization activities; and
How recent legislative actions such as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act have affected industry and DOE plans and strategies going forward.