Thailand ramps up rare earth production

Thailand is accelerating its role in the rare earth elements (REE) supply chain as magnet demand from EVs and electronics surges.
Neo Magnequench reported a 261% year‑on‑year capacity increase at its Nakhon Ratchasima plant, converting imported neodymium‑praseodymium (NdPr) into permanent magnets with several thousand tonnes per year of output.
The expansion dovetails with new EU sustainability rules: CSRD reporting phases and the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) will impose carbon transparency and potential import costs on emissions‑intensive goods, including components used in green technologies.
Analysts advise Thai exporters to start carbon accounting, deploy immediate decarbonisation projects (solar, waste management) and seek green finance to capture a ‘‘greenium’’ and avoid CBAM levies.
Thailand’s model centres on value‑added processing and magnet manufacturing rather than upstream mining; domestic REO reserves are modest (~4,500 t per USGS), so plants rely on imported feedstock and recycling initiatives.
Domestic EV investment—highlighted by BYD’s new Rayong assembly hub—and a government Clean Tech Industry Roadmap are driving local demand and supply‑chain integration toward one million EVs annually within a few years.
Challenges remain: China’s dominant REE reserves and export controls, environmental management of processing wastes, and the need for technological upgrades and recycling to bolster resilience and sustainability.