ERI and ReElement Form Rare Earth Recycling Partnership

ERI and ReElement Technologies have launched a collaboration to recover rare earth elements from end-of-life electronics, aiming to strengthen domestic supply chains for critical components.

ERI will funnel retired consumer devices from its nationwide recycling network — including smartwatches, earbuds, portable speakers, chargers, magnetic charging cases and small hard drives — into ReElement's refining operations. ERI's footprint across California, Arizona, Indiana, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Texas and Washington provides broad, continuous feedstock.

ReElement operates a qualifying refinery in Noblesville and is building a 400,000-square-foot complex in Marion slated to open in early 2026. The Marion plant is projected to become the largest U.S. producer of purified rare earth oxides, capable of refining up to about 9,000 metric tons of magnet-grade oxides annually from recycled material and mined ore.

Technically, ReElement uses an aqueous, chromatography-based separation process that moves dissolved material through resin-packed columns to isolate individual rare earths with high purity, reducing solvent volumes compared with legacy methods. The partners are evaluating which preparatory steps should occur at ERI sites versus ReElement facilities to optimize cost and throughput.

The effort targets a circular economy for neodymium and other magnet metals, with implications for electric vehicles, data-center hardware, robotics, defense systems and high-performance chips that underpin modern and decentralized networks.