India approves rare-earth magnet manufacturing programme

New Delhi, Nov 26 — India approved a 72.8 billion rupee (about $816 million) programme to establish domestic manufacturing of rare-earth permanent magnets, the information minister said on Wednesday.
The move targets a key supply-chain choke point for electric vehicles, aerospace, defence and renewable energy: rare-earth permanent magnets are among the strongest magnet types and India expects consumption to double by 2030. Currently most demand is met by imports; the country imported 53,748 metric tons of rare-earth magnets in the fiscal year ending March 2025.
The heavy industries ministry said the programme will fund new plants with combined capacity of 6,000 metric tons per annum, to be allocated to five beneficiaries through global competitive bidding, with up to 1,200 tpa per recipient. Information Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said the initiative should 'practically reduce to zero' India's import dependence once the facilities are operational.
Officials say the scheme aims to strengthen domestic supply chains for high-performance magnets and support downstream industries that rely on strategic rare-earth materials.