GM and MP Materials Advance Domestic Rare Earth Supply Chain for EV Motors

General Motors and MP Materials are progressing with a domestic supply chain for automotive-grade permanent magnets, moving from mining and refining in California to manufacturing in Texas and validation in Michigan.

What Happened

In 2021, GM entered a long-term agreement with MP Materials to develop a U.S. supply of automotive-grade permanent magnets, becoming the foundational automotive customer for MP’s Independence facility in Fort Worth, Texas. At the time, MP Materials was operating Mountain Pass, North America’s only active, large-scale rare earth mining and refining site, and was working to build a fully integrated magnetics business. Five years later, MP Materials is producing automotive magnets at the Independence facility, while GM teams are testing and validating them in electric motors at labs in Pontiac, Michigan.

Why It Matters

The collaboration connects rare earth materials mined and refined in California with magnet manufacturing in Texas and GM motor development in Michigan, illustrating GM’s "buy where we build" approach. GM’s Global Chief Procurement and Supply Chain Officer, Shilpan Amin, noted that being a foundational customer creates early certainty around demand and aligns long-term plans, allowing technical teams to work through details required to move from investment to industrialization. The partnership aims to provide greater resilience, competitiveness, and flexibility in the supply chain for GM’s current family of electric motors, which use interior permanent magnets to maximize range, performance, and space.

The Bottom Line

GM and MP Materials have successfully transitioned from strategic planning to active production and validation of domestic permanent magnets, marking a tangible step toward a resilient U.S. EV supply chain.