The UK’s uk rare earth recycling sector reached a commercial milestone in January 2026 with the official opening of a sintered NdFeB magnet recycling facility at Tyseley Energy Park in Birmingham — the first of its kind in the country and the first to reintroduce sintered rare earth magnet manufacturing to the UK in over 25 years. The facility, operated by HyProMag Ltd and backed by Mkango Resources (AIM/TSXV: MKA), processes end-of-life magnets from hard drives, electric motors, and wind turbines using a hydrogen-based decrepitation process at 100 tonnes per annum (tpa) capacity on a single shift, scalable beyond 300 tpa on multiple shifts. The opening was attended by Chris McDonald MP, Minister for Industry, reflecting the facility’s alignment with the UK Government’s Vision 2035: Critical Minerals Strategy, published November 2025.
UK Rare Earth Recycling: The HyProMag Birmingham Facility
HyProMag’s Hydrogen Processing of Magnet Scrap (HPMS) technology was developed over two decades by the Magnetic Materials Group at the University of Birmingham, led by Professor Allan Walton. The commercial facility at Tyseley Energy Park scales a previous proof-of-concept that handled 50–100 kg batches; the operational plant recovers over 400 kg of rare earth alloy per batch. HPMS uses hydrogen gas to decrepitate NdFeB magnets — causing the alloy to absorb hydrogen and fracture along grain boundaries — without full chemical dissolution of individual rare earth elements. The output is a demagnetised powder that can be resintered directly into new magnets, or processed further into metals and alloys.
The CO₂ saving versus primary extraction is approximately 90%, according to the University of Birmingham. The process also bypasses the hydrometallurgical solvent extraction steps that require large chemical plants and generate significant waste streams — a practical advantage for permitting and operational cost in a UK regulatory environment. The facility was funded by £4.5 million from Innovate UK’s Driving the Electric Revolution Industrialisation Centres (DER-IC), with additional grants from the Innovate Climates Programme, EPSRC, the Advanced Propulsion Centre, and EU Horizon programmes.
HPMS technology is exclusively licensed to HyProMag Ltd, which is 100% owned by Maginito Ltd, itself a subsidiary of Mkango Resources. The same technology underpins HyProMag GmbH’s facility in Pforzheim, Germany — launched April 2026 — confirming the international scalability of the process. William Dawes, Chief Executive of Mkango and Director of HyProMag, described the Birmingham opening as “transformational for rare earth supply chains, bringing back magnet manufacturing to the UK after more than 20 years.”
Ionic Technologies: Hydrometallurgical Route to High-Purity Oxides
A parallel track in uk rare earth recycling operates at Belfast Harbour, where Ionic Technologies — the processing subsidiary of Ionic Rare Earths — uses a hydrometallurgical chemical process to separate and refine magnet scrap into rare earth oxides (REOs) of 99.5%+ purity. Unlike HPMS, which preserves the alloy and produces powder for resintering, the hydrometallurgical route fully dissolves the magnet material and separates individual rare earth elements — producing discrete neodymium and dysprosium oxide streams that match or exceed virgin material specifications.
In early 2026, Ionic Technologies secured a £12 million UK government grant under the DRIVE35 programme to expand its Belfast facility towards 400 metric tonnes of commercial capacity. The two approaches — HPMS short-loop at Birmingham and hydrometallurgical long-loop at Belfast — are complementary: HPMS is more energy-efficient and lower-cost for high-quality feedstock, while hydrometallurgy handles lower-grade or more contaminated scrap streams that cannot be short-looped. Current neodymium prices of $124.87/kg (SMM, April 2026) and dysprosium at $220.93/kg give both recovered oxide streams measurable commercial value on top of their strategic rationale.
The CirculaREEconomy Project and Automotive Integration
The £11 million CirculaREEconomy project — funded by the Advanced Propulsion Centre and including Less Common Metals and EMR as partners — targets the creation of a fully circular UK automotive supply chain for rare earth magnets. The consortium processes recycled oxides back into high-specification alloys engineered for next-generation EV motor specifications, closing the loop from end-of-life vehicle component to remanufactured magnet without leaving the UK supply chain.
JLR (Jaguar Land Rover) has been a visible industry partner in the UK recycling build-out. David Watkin, Battery Services Lead at JLR, stated the company is “focused heavily on advancing circularity through reduced content, designing for disassembly and, as the infrastructure matures, shifting from virgin to recycled material.” For UK automotive OEMs sourcing magnets for EV drivetrains, uk rare earth recycling capacity represents both a supply chain resilience tool and a route to Scope 3 emission reduction — a growing OEM procurement requirement under UK and EU carbon reporting frameworks.
The Offshore Wind Feedstock Opportunity
A National Engineering Policy Centre report has identified the UK’s offshore wind infrastructure as a future high-volume feedstock source for uk rare earth recycling. Beginning in commercially significant volumes around 2038 — when first-generation UK offshore turbines reach end-of-life — the decommissioning wave is projected to yield an average of 1 million kg of neodymium magnets annually. The Centre estimates that manufacturing magnets from this recovered UK wind feedstock would reduce costs for domestic industries by more than 70% compared to importing primary material from international markets. A single large offshore wind turbine can recover sufficient neodymium to supply the electric motors for approximately 12,000 EVs. For context on the turbine manufacturers that will drive this decommissioning cycle, see the top 10 wind turbine manufacturers using rare earths.
The offshore wind feedstock opportunity is the most significant long-run argument for UK recycling investment — but it is a 2030s phenomenon, not a 2026 one. Near-term feedstock is sourced from hard disk drives, manufacturing offcuts, and electric motor scrap from current vehicle and industrial equipment end-of-life streams. The scale of the Birmingham facility — 100 tpa commissioning — is calibrated to available near-term feedstock, with expansion tied to the maturation of EV and wind scrap supply over the decade.
Policy Context: Vision 2035 and China Supply Risk
The UK Government’s Vision 2035: Critical Minerals Strategy, published November 2025, explicitly identifies rare earth magnets as a priority supply chain. The strategy’s goals include diversifying import sources, building domestic processing and recycling capability, and reducing dependence on Chinese supply — which accounts for the large majority of global rare earth processing capacity. China’s 2025–2026 export restrictions on processed rare earths and permanent magnets have sharpened UK policymakers’ focus on domestic recycling as a near-term mitigation. The full scope of those restrictions and their market impact is covered in our analysis of China’s rare earth export controls.
The UK’s uk rare earth recycling infrastructure currently operates at a fraction of national demand for NdFeB magnets — as does Germany’s. Europe’s combined recycling capacity remains below 10% of annual consumption. The strategic value is in establishing the process infrastructure, supply chain relationships, and regulatory frameworks before feedstock volumes scale, rather than in the tonnages recoverable today. For the broader European picture, see our overview of Europe’s rare earth strategy and the top 10 rare earth recycling companies globally.
UK Rare Earth Recycling: Key Facilities at a Glance
| Facility | Location | Technology | Capacity | Funding | Output |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HyProMag (Tyseley Energy Park) | Birmingham | HPMS — hydrogen short-loop | 100 tpa (300+ tpa multi-shift) | £4.5M Innovate UK DER-IC + EPSRC, APC, EU Horizon | Sintered NdFeB powder / new magnets |
| Ionic Technologies | Belfast Harbour | Hydrometallurgical — full dissolution | Expanding to 400 tpa | £12M DRIVE35 government grant | 99.5%+ pure Nd/Dy oxides |
| CirculaREEconomy Consortium | UK-wide | Recycled oxide to alloy reprocessing | Pilot / consortium | £11M Advanced Propulsion Centre | EV motor-grade rare earth alloys |
Sources: UK Research and Innovation (UKRI); USGS Rare Earths Statistics and Information.
For a broader analysis of the circular economy framework surrounding rare earth recovery, see our rare earth recycling and circular economy analysis.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice. Prices are subject to change without notice.
What is UK rare earth recycling and why does it matter?
UK rare earth recycling recovers neodymium, dysprosium, and other critical elements from end-of-life magnets in electronics, EV motors, and wind turbines. It reduces dependence on Chinese primary supply — which dominates global rare earth processing — and cuts CO₂ emissions by approximately 90% versus mined material. The UK Government’s Vision 2035: Critical Minerals Strategy identifies it as a supply chain priority.
What is HyProMag’s HPMS technology?
Hydrogen Processing of Magnet Scrap (HPMS) uses hydrogen gas to decrepitate NdFeB magnets along their grain boundaries, producing a demagnetised alloy powder that can be resintered directly into new magnets. Developed at the University of Birmingham, it bypasses full chemical dissolution — reducing cost, emissions, and processing complexity. The Birmingham facility can process 100 tpa on a single shift, scaling to over 300 tpa on multiple shifts.
How does Ionic Technologies’ Belfast recycling process differ from HyProMag?
Ionic Technologies uses a hydrometallurgical chemical route that fully dissolves magnet scrap and separates individual rare earth elements into high-purity oxides (99.5%+). This produces discrete neodymium and dysprosium oxide streams suitable for any downstream application, but requires more intensive chemical processing than HPMS. The two technologies are complementary — short-loop HPMS for high-quality feedstock, hydrometallurgy for lower-grade scrap.
When will UK offshore wind turbines become a major recycling feedstock?
In commercially significant volumes from approximately 2038, when first-generation UK offshore wind turbines reach end-of-life. The National Engineering Policy Centre estimates this will yield around 1 million kg of neodymium magnets annually — enough to supply electric motors for approximately 12 million EVs per year if fully recovered. Near-term feedstock comes from hard drives, manufacturing scrap, and current-generation EV components.
What UK government funding supports rare earth recycling?
Key funding streams include £4.5 million from Innovate UK’s DER-IC programme for the HyProMag Birmingham facility; £12 million via the DRIVE35 programme for Ionic Technologies’ Belfast expansion; and £11 million from the Advanced Propulsion Centre for the CirculaREEconomy consortium. All sit within the framework of Vision 2035: Critical Minerals Strategy.
