Korea Zinc Partners with U.S. Alta Resource Technologies for Rare Earth Production Collaboration

Targeting Commercial Operations in 2027
Joint Venture to Process 100 Tons of End-of-Life Permanent Magnets Annually
Aiming to Produce Rare Earths for Electric Vehicles, Defense, and Wind Turbines

On January 13, Korea Zinc announced that it has entered into a strategic partnership with Alta Resource Technologies, a U.S.-based company possessing biochemical technology for separating rare earth elements, to produce rare earths. This partnership is part of efforts to recycle and refine end-of-life permanent magnets into high-purity rare earth oxides for rare earth production.

A view of the Onsan Smelter of Korea Zinc located in Ulsan. Korea Zinc

The two companies plan to establish a joint venture in the United States and build related facilities on the site of Korea Zinc’s existing U.S. subsidiary. The joint venture aims to begin commercial operations of its rare earth production facility in 2027. Initially, it will secure the capacity to process and produce 100 tons per year of high-purity rare earth oxides, with plans to gradually expand production scale over time.

Furthermore, the companies will focus on producing high-purity rare earth oxides such as neodymium oxide, praseodymium oxide, dysprosium oxide, and terbium oxide using end-of-life permanent magnets as raw materials. They are expected to establish a stable supply base for rare earth oxides, which are essential for electric vehicle motors, wind turbines, and defense industry systems, for both the United States and South Korea.

Meanwhile, Korea Zinc is pursuing a project to build an integrated smelter in the United States. Its U.S. subsidiary, PedalPoint, has strategically acquired electronic waste recycling company Igneo, electronics recycling company evTerra, scrap metal trading company Kataman Metals, and IT asset management company MDSi since 2022, forming a comprehensive resource circulation value chain in the United States. The resource circulation business foundation established by PedalPoint is expected to provide a stable supply of raw materials necessary for producing rare earth oxides.

PedalPoint is also expected to create synergy with Korea Zinc’s ongoing ‘Crucible’ smelter construction project in the United States. Alta Resource Technologies is a leading company in the concept of ‘Precision Mining,’ possessing a biochemical process platform technology that uses custom-designed proteins to selectively separate and refine low-concentration rare earth elements contained within complex mixtures. Having recently completed its Series A funding round, Alta Resource Technologies plans to establish a business model for producing rare earth oxides from secondary resources available in the United States through its partnership with Korea Zinc.

Yoon-Bum Choi, Chairman of Korea Zinc, stated, “Following our strategy to play a central role in the U.S.-Korea critical minerals supply chain through smelter construction in the United States, this collaboration marks a significant milestone in the increasingly strategic rare earth sector worldwide. Going forward, we will reliably supply rare earths to advanced technology companies in both countries and faithfully fulfill our role as a ‘trusted supply chain partner.’”