The Ministry of Heavy Industries received 20 bids under its Scheme to Promote Manufacturing of Sintered Rare Earth Permanent Magnets (REPM) in India. These magnets — made from neodymium, dysprosium, and other rare earth elements — are critical for EV motors, wind turbines, and defence systems. India currently imports nearly all its REPM requirements, overwhelmingly from China. The scheme aims to build domestic manufacturing capacity and reduce strategic import dependence in a sector central to the clean energy transition.

Rare Earth Permanent Magnets (REPMs), particularly sintered neodymium-iron-boron (NdFeB) magnets, are among the most strategically important advanced materials in the modern economy. They are essential components in EV traction motors, wind turbine generators, missile guidance systems, MRI machines, and consumer electronics. Their power-to-weight ratio is unmatched, making them irreplaceable in miniaturised, high-efficiency applications.

The rare earth elements (REEs) involved — neodymium (Nd), praseodymium (Pr), dysprosium (Dy), and terbium (Tb) — are not actually 'rare' in crustal abundance but are rarely found in economically exploitable concentrations. China controls approximately 60% of global rare earth mining and over 85% of global REE processing and magnet manufacturing, giving it extraordinary leverage over global supply chains.

India has significant rare earth reserves — the world's fifth-largest, concentrated in monazite-bearing beach and inland placer deposits in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, and Odisha. However, monazite contains thorium, a radioactive element, making its processing subject to strict atomic energy regulations under the Atomic Minerals Directorate (AMD). Indian Rare Earths Limited (IREL), a public sector undertaking, handles this material.

The MHI scheme is part of a broader push — alongside PLI schemes and the National Critical Mineral Mission — to build an integrated domestic REPM supply chain, from mining and separation through magnet fabrication, supporting India's EV and renewable energy targets.