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Niron Magnetics announced Monday that it has begun a formal site selection process for a high-volume, iron-nitride magnet manufacturing plant in the United States, valued at over $1.8 billion.

The company is working with global real estate advisory firm Savills to find locations that can support a “highly specialized, scalable manufacturing operation,” Executive Managing Director Ken Biberaj said in a statement.

The facility would span 1.6 million square feet, create more than 700 jobs, and produce up to 10,000 tons of iron-nitride permanent magnets per year. Construction is set to begin in 2028.

The two companies are evaluating locations based on “access to transportation infrastructure, energy capacity, workforce availability and alignment with environmental and economic development priorities,” according to the press release.

Once the proposed facility begins production, the site will support up to 2% of the global permanent magnet market. 

“This process is about identifying a partner that shares our commitment to rebuilding U.S. manufacturing capability for technologies that are essential to the global economy,” Niron Magnetics CEO Jonathan Rowntree said in a statement. “Permanent magnets are foundational to everything from electric motors to defense, and expanding domestic production with the right partner who shares this vision will be critical to strengthening supply chain resilience.”

No other details were disclosed, but the company said in the press release it will share updates on “key milestones” reached during the site selection process.

The proposed facility would be Niron’s second in the U.S. In September 2025, the rare-earth-free magnet manufacturer broke ground on a $169.7 million facility in Sartell, Minnesota. The plant will span 190,000 square feet and create 175 jobs, supplying rare-earth-free permanent magnets for data center cooling pumps, automobile motors, robotics, consumer electronics, defense and drone equipment, and other critical applications. The Sartell site is anticipated to begin operations in early 2027.

Niron was established in 2013 through a partnership with the Department of Energy and the University of Minnesota. The company developed a manufacturing process for high-performance, rare-earth-free permanent magnets and formed partnerships with global producers across the automotive, industrial and technology sectors. 

In 2024, Niron opened a 70,000-square-foot commercial pilot plant at its headquarters in Minneapolis, with a production capacity of more than five tons of rare-earth-free magnets annually.

Rowntree has advocated accelerating domestic magnet production and securing critical industrial supply chains, particularly those not reliant on rare earth minerals, before a House committee in November 2025. China holds the largest of rare earth mine reserves, according to a U.S. Geological Survey report. The country has tightened its export controls on rare earth minerals, requiring companies to apply for an export license for the critical materials.

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