The new recycling facility is expected to produce 600 tonnes per year of recycled Mixed Rare Earth Oxides with planned expansion to triple its capacity, strengthening U.S. production of rare earths, with focus on heavy rare earth elements.

‍TORONTO – January 29th, 2026 – Cyclic Materials, the advanced recycling company creating a resilient and secure circular supply chain for rare earth elements (REEs) and other critical materials, today announced it is investing more than USD $82M to establish a rare earth recycling campus in McBee, South Carolina. The new site will host Cyclic Materials’ second U.S. Spoke facility and the company’s largest Hub facility to date, capable of processing 2,000 tonnes of magnet material with a planned expansion to 6,000 tonnes per year.

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The combined Spoke and Hub facility will utilize Cyclic Materials’ proprietary MagCycle℠ and REEPure℠ processes to separate and recover Mixed Rare Earth Oxides (MREO) from end-of-life products that are typically not recycled today, enabling a resilient, North American-anchored source of REEs. These materials are critical to the production of vehicles, advanced electronics, AI infrastructure, and high-performance permanent magnets used in defense, wind turbines, and advanced manufacturing systems.

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The site will initially have the capacity to produce 600 tonnes of MREO a year, with a planned expansion to produce 1,800 tonnes to meet growing demand. Deploying such a facility will enable Cyclic Materials to onshore the production of these critical materials in short order, particularly the much-needed heavy rare earths. The expected 1,800 tonnes of MREO produced by this campus annually would supply REEs equivalent to the material needed to produce 6 million hybrid transmissions per year.

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The announcement follows Cyclic Materials’ late-2025 agreement with VACUUMSCHMELZE (VAC), a global leader in magnetic materials and solutions. Under a 10-year exclusive agreement, Cyclic Materials will recycle 100% of magnet production byproducts (swarf) generated at VAC’s new manufacturing facility in nearby Sumter, South Carolina, which began operations at the end of 2025. Together, the two companies’ facilities position South Carolina as a strategic hub for rare earth magnet recycling and production in the U.S.

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“Announcing the opening of our second U.S. recycling site in South Carolina is a major milestone and a clear signal of our long-term commitment to building resilient, domestic critical minerals infrastructure in the U.S.,” said Ahmad Ghahreman, CEO and founder of Cyclic Materials. “This facility will enable Cyclic to reliably serve partners such as VAC, while scaling our advanced recycling technologies that support manufacturing, create a secure supply chain for the most critical rare earth elements, reduce reliance on overseas supply chains, and recirculate rare earths back to our domestic partners, ultimately delivering valuable economic benefit and environmental value.”

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By scaling regional sourcing and processing of rare earth elements, Cyclic Materials is accelerating domestic deployment of rare earth elements supply infrastructure years faster than traditional mining projects, in addition to being much less resource intensive. The South Carolina project will also be supported by a range of federal and state incentives. Operations for the South Carolina campus are expected to begin in 2028, creating over 90 new highly skilled jobs for the state.

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“Cyclic Materials’ new facility in Chesterfield County reflects the confidence companies have in South Carolina’s workforce and our ability to support advanced manufacturing. This over $82 million investment will bring jobs to the community and strengthen the local economy,” said South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster.

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Established in 2021, Cyclic Materials’ proprietary technologies are capable of economically and sustainably recovering critical raw materials from end-of-life magnet-containing products such as drones, robots, electric vehicle motors, wind turbines, MRI machines, and data center electronics. Cyclic Materials recently announced a Series C investment round of $75 Million USD led by T. Rowe Price, in addition to backing by global leaders including Microsoft, Amazon, Canada Growth Fund, Hitachi Ventures, BMW i Ventures, Jaguar Land Rover’s lnMotion fund, Energy Impact Partners, ArcTern Ventures, Fifth Wall and more. The company has forged strategic commercial partnerships with key industry leaders such as Solvay, Vattenfall, Lime, and VACUUMSCHMELZE to recycle magnets containing REEs and bring a circular and resilient rare earth supply chain to scale.

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About Cyclic Materials

Cyclic Materials, founded in 2021, is a cleantech company building a resilient supply chain for rare earth elements (REEs) and other critical materials through recycling of magnet-containing EOL. Its innovative technology transforms end-of-life products into valuable raw materials used in AI, robotics, defense and advanced manufacturing critical to the future of Western industry. With the success of its commercial demonstration, and first successful shipments of very high quality recycled Mixed Rare Earth Oxides (rMREO) to customers, the company is scaling its cutting-edge technology to recover REEs from permanent magnets, leveraging its proprietary MagCycle℠ and REEPure℠ processes to feed strategic industries with secure supply of recycled rMREO. Cyclic Materials is scaling its footprint across North America, Europe and Asia. With Mesa, Arizona hosting its first commercial scale Spoke facility, and Kingston, Ontario serving as a Centre of Excellence with R&D facility and Hub hydrometallurgical site, the company is expanding its REE recycling infrastructure in the US to supply the surging demand for permanent magnets that power our modern world. In recognition of its pioneering work, the company was named Top 10 Climate Tech Companies to Watch by MIT Tech Review in 2025. Learn more at cyclicmaterials.earth.

Media Contacts

Jacquie Kane

cyclicmaterials@antennagroup.com

Source: Cyclic Materials

The companies have signed a 10-year exclusive agreement for recycling 100 percent of the magnet production by­-products (i.e. swarf) that will be produced at VAC’s impressive new manufacturing facility in Sumter, South Carolina scheduled to begin operations at the end of 2025.

‍TORONTO – October 22nd, 2025 – Cyclic Materials, the advanced recycling company creating a circular supply chain for rare earth elements (REEs) and other critical materials, today announced an extension of its partnership with VACUUMSCHMELZE (VAC), a leading developer of magnetic materials and solutions.

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The companies have signed a 10-year exclusive agreement for recycling 100 percent of the magnet production by-­products (i.e. swarf) that will be produced at VAC’s impressive new manufacturing facility in Sumter, South Carolina scheduled to begin operations at the end of 2025. This extended partnership builds on the 2024 agreement between both companies that ensures efficient recycling of critical materials used in high-performance permanent magnets.

“At Cyclic Materials, our mission is to recover critical materials from permanent magnets that can be put back into the magnet supply chain to reduce the reliance on traditional mining methods and overseas sources,” said Ahmad Ghahreman, co-founder and CEO of Cyclic Materials. “With the extension of our partnership with VAC, we’re collectively building more momentum towards our goal of building a North American supply chain. VAC brings not only a reliable source of raw materials for extraction but also decades of expertise in rare earth magnet technology. Together we are making the circular economy a reality.”

VAC produces neodymium-iron-boron (NdFeB) rare earth magnets, which are essential to automotive, defense, industrial and renewable energy applications. Through this extended agreement, VAC also strengthens its commitment to circularity with the option to reintegrate recycled Mixed Rare Earth Oxides (rMREOs) from Cyclic Materials into its own production processes.

“We are pleased to expand our partnership with Cyclic Materials to further support the circular economy for critical materials essential to the energy transition,” said Dr. Erik Eschen, CEO of VACUUMSCHMELZE. “The addition of this new contract for our South Carolina facility strengthens our ability to localize the recovery and reintegration of REEs back into our production. By continuing to leverage Cyclic Materials’ innovative recycling processes alongside our advanced magnet manufacturing, we are collectively ensuring a sustainable and high-purity feedstock for high­ performance magnets to meet current and future industrial demand.”

Cyclic Materials raised $57 million in its Series B equity round last year, backed by global industry leaders like Microsoft, Amazon, Hitachi Ventures, BMW i Ventures, Jaguar Land Rover’s lnMotion fund, and specialized funds such as Energy Impact Partners, ArcTern Ventures and Fifth Wall. Together, these investments position Cyclic Materials as a key partner for companies seeking sustainable and circular supply chain solutions, particularly in the automotive and data center industries.

The company recently announced its move into the U.S. with its plans to open a facility in Mesa, Arizona, which underscores the critical role Cyclic Materials plays in advancing sustainable supply chains as it expands its footprint across North America with plans to establish operations into Europe in the future.

Established in 2021, Cyclic Materials’ proprietary technologies are capable of economically and sustainably recovering critical raw materials from end-of-life electric vehicle motors, wind turbines, MRI machines, and data center electronic waste. Over the years, the company has forged strategic partnerships with key industry leaders such as Solvay, Vattenfall, Synetiq, and VACUUMSCHMELZE to recycle magnets containing REEs and establish a circular supply chain.

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About Cyclic Materials

Cyclic Materials, founded in 2021, is a cleantech company building a circular supply chain for rare earth elements (REEs) and other critical materials essential to the clean energy transition. Its innovative technology transforms end-of-life products into valuable raw materials used in EVs, wind turbines, and electronics. In 2023, the company launched a commercial demo facility using its MagCycle℠ process to recover rare earth magnets. In 2024, it opened a second facility in Kingston, Ontario, producing Mixed Rare Earth Oxide via its REEPure℠ hydrometallurgical process. With demand for REE-based magnets surging, Cyclic Materials is scaling globally across North America, Europe, and Asia. Mesa, Arizona, is its first U.S. location. In recognition of its pioneering work, it was named the #8 Most Innovative company in North America by Fast Company in 2025. Learn more at cyclicmaterials.earth.

About VACUUMSCHMELZE (VAC)

VACUUMSCHMELZE (VAC) is a leading global producer of advanced magnetic solutions, rare earth permanent magnets, and inductive components. With extensive application know-how and 100 years of experience in material science and product development, VAC designs and manufactures mission critical solutions for a wide variety of industries, including renewable energy, e-mobility, automotive, industrial automation, medical, aerospace. VAC’s unique ability to develop and manufacture from base elements through final products enables us to provide customers optimal form factors and performance, generating best in class efficient solutions in an environmentally conscious manner. More information is available at www.vacuumschmelze.com. VAC is a portfolio company of Ara Partners, a global private equity and infrastructure firm that is decarbonizing the industrial economy. More information at www.vacuumschmelze.com.

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About ARA Partners

ARA Partners is a global private equity and infrastructure investment firm focused on industrial decarbonization. Founded in 2017, ARA Partners seeks to build and scale companies with significant decarbonization impact across the industrial and manufacturing, chemicals and materials, energy efficiency and green fuels, and food and agriculture sectors. The company operates from offices in Houston, Boston, Washington D.C., and Dublin. Ara Partners closed its third private equity fund in December 2023 with over $2.8 billion in capital commitments. As of June 30, 2025, Ara Partners had approximately $6.6 billion of assets under management.

For more information about Ara Partners, please visit www.arapartners.com.

Media Contacts

For VAC:

Dominik Kresslein

+49 6181 38-0

pr@vacuumschmelze.com

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For Cyclic Materials:

Jacquie Kane

+1 978-764-7840

cyclicmaterials@antennagroup.com

Source: Cyclic Materials