What a new Minnesota plant could mean for magnet supply amid U.S.-China trade war

NINA MOINI: Well, you probably don't think much about the magnets that are essential to the operation of your computer, cell phone, vehicle, audio speakers. But if these components were suddenly unavailable, you might notice it pretty quickly. Most magnets are made from rare earth elements imported from China, and access to these elements has become a bargaining chip in the US trade war with China.

But the magnet supply could become less of a concern if a Minnesota company is successful in its bid to replace rare earth magnets. The company held an official groundbreaking of its new manufacturing plant in Sartell last week. Kirsti Marohn was there and joins me now to share what she's learned, as part of our check-in with our amazing reporters in greater Minnesota. Thanks for being with us, Kirsti.

KIRSTI MAROHN: Hi, Nina. Thanks for having me.

NINA MOINI: I loved learning so much about magnets. I really didn't know. Tell us about this company, and how did they get started?

KIRSTI MAROHN: Yeah, I didn't know much either, so it was a learning experience for me. Yeah, the company is called Niron Magnetics, and it was started here in Minnesota. There's a professor at the University of Minnesota named Jian-Ping Wang, and he developed this process to produce these rare-earth-free magnets more than a decade ago, and then he helped start the company.

Niron got a grant from the US Department of Energy to scale up this technology, and then last year, it opened a pilot plant in Minneapolis. And it announced plans to build its first full-scale commercial manufacturing plant in Sartell, just north of St. Cloud. The plant should open in 2027, and it's expected to produce 1,500 tons of these magnets per year.

NINA MOINI: And what's so different about Niron's magnets?

KIRSTI MAROHN: Well, the big difference is they're not made of these rare earth elements that have been scarce in the US. These magnets are made of iron and nitrogen, which, of course, are two elements that are very abundant in Minnesota.

NINA MOINI: Sure.

KIRSTI MAROHN: The iron they're getting from iron salt. That's a byproduct of manufacturing steel from iron ore. So of course, Minnesota's Iron Range is a great resource, and then nitrogen also is plentiful in the Midwest. It's a key ingredient in the production of fertilizer. So Niron uses these two elements, combines them to make iron nitride, which is a magnetic powder. And then it forms that powder into magnets of different shapes and sizes. And Niron says their magnets are actually more powerful than the rare earth element ones, and they don't have the environmental impacts that come from mining these rare earth minerals. That process really produces a lot of environmental pollution and can cause health problems, too.

NINA MOINI: Sure. So we use these magnets for so many different products, like we mentioned in the introduction. Are manufacturers having trouble getting magnets right now, that they need?

KIRSTI MAROHN: Yeah, they are. We use so many. This interesting fact that I learned, a cell phone can have, like, 18 different magnets.

NINA MOINI: Oh, wow.

KIRSTI MAROHN: And a vehicle, like a car or truck, has at least 75.

NINA MOINI: Wow.

KIRSTI MAROHN: And then we're seeing the need for these magnets growing because of things like AI and data centers, and even the robots that are used in industrial manufacturing. So there is a concern about a shortage of these magnets, and I think some of the recent trade disputes have heightened those concerns. We saw China halted exports of certain rare earth elements and magnets back in April, and that was in response to the US imposing new tariffs on Chinese goods. So that move threatened to disrupt US auto and defense manufacturing.

So Niron says it's magnets should help reduce US dependence on other countries for imported materials, and as a result, we've seen some pretty big companies investing in Niron. That includes GM, Stellantis, Samsung. These companies are hoping that Niron can produce a domestically sourced alternative to these rare earth magnets.

NINA MOINI: Sure. And so why Sartell? How did Niron choose its plant location?

KIRSTI MAROHN: Yeah, that's a great question. So they looked at a bunch of different locations. Sartell is not too far from the Twin Cities, and it had available land. The site is part of the former Verso paper mill that was the biggest employer in Sartell for many years. It was destroyed by an explosion and a fire back in 2012, so it's been closed ever since, and the city has really wanted to redevelop that land. So the city offered Niron tax increment financing, and it waived some city fees, and Sartell is really hoping this plant will bring economic development and jobs. It's expected to create about 175 permanent jobs once it's done.

NINA MOINI: And so you were there in Sartell last week for the groundbreaking for the new plant. What stood out to you?

KIRSTI MAROHN: Yeah, it was really kind of a big deal. There were a lot of people there, including some pretty high-ranking elected officials from both political parties. Governor Tim Walz was there, US representatives Tom Emmer and Betty McCollum, several state lawmakers. And both Republicans and Democrats have supported this project, in part because it promises to benefit both the economy and the environment.

And this event, there was just a lot of fanfare-- even the Sartell High School pep band was there playing. A lot of people are just really hoping that this plant will be a benefit to the community and the whole state. And there's already talk about where Niron's going to build its next plant, which is going to be huge. They're saying a $1.2 billion facility that can produce 10,000 tons of these magnets a year. So Niron is looking for a location for that plant, and at this event last week, some politicians urged the company to build it here in Minnesota.

NINA MOINI: Yeah. That's fun that you said the pep band was there, because if you think about that area being dormant since 2012, I bet they were really excited, Kirsti. Before I let you go, I do want to just ask you about-- so we were all-- everybody, even our greater Minnesota teams, were in the Twin Cities this week. It was really fun. When you do come to the Cities, what do you like to do?

KIRSTI MAROHN: Oh, well, I always try, if I have time, to get over to the University of Minnesota, because my daughter is a student there. So I was able to do that last weekend and we caught the Gopher game, which was very exciting. And then took an early-morning run along the Mississippi River on Sunday, and it was just beautiful. So that was fun.

NINA MOINI: Snuck in a run. I love that. Thanks for your reporting, Kirsti, and sharing it with us. Great talking to you.

KIRSTI MAROHN: Thanks, Nina.

NINA MOINI: That was MPR News correspondent Kirsti Marohn.