USA Rare Earth Accelerates Timeline for Round Top Deposit Commercial Production by Two Years

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[{"type":"text","content":"STILLWATER, Okla., Dec. 10, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- USA Rare Earth, Inc. (Nasdaq: USAR) (USAR or the Company) today announced a significant acceleration of the commercialization timeline for its Round Top heavy rare earth deposit in Texas. The Company now plans to begin commercial production in late 2028, two years earlier than previously anticipated. Round Top is the United States’ richest known deposit of heavy rare earth elements, gallium, and beryllium, and is a cornerstone of USAR’s integrated mine-to-magnet value chain. That value chain also includes a 310,000 sq ft. magnet manufacturing facility in Stillwater, Oklahoma, which is expected to be the largest metal-and-alloy-making and strip-casting capability outside of China, and a processing and separation laboratory in Wheat Ridge, Colorado. “We’re challenging ourselves to innovate and pursue creative solutions that accelerate our timeline for securing, reshoring, and growing the U.S. rare earth value chain,” said Barbara Humpton, Chief Executive Officer of USA Rare Earth. “Beginning commercial production at Round Top two years earlier than anticipated would be an exciting milestone made possible by the team’s technical capabilities, process knowledge, and ingenuity. As global demand for rare earth magnets continues to rise and geopolitical risks escalate, accelerating domestic production is essential for securing the long-term competitiveness of U.S. manufacturing.” USAR has accelerated the planned commercialization timeline for Round Top because it expects to begin operating its Hydromet demonstration facility in Colorado early in 2026, based on the promising results of its recent and ongoing SX piloting. The Hydromet facility will operate five solvent-extraction (SX) circuits continuously, for 2,000 to 4,000 hours, to generate the operational data required to proceed with commercial plant design. These circuits will target heavy rare earth elements, particularly dysprosium (Dy) and terbium (Tb), which are essential for high-performance permanent magnets, while also extracting additional critical minerals including hafnium and zirconium. This novel parallel-process approach is expected to save the Company tens of millions of dollars, while enabling USAR to complete its definitive feasibility study (DFS) by early 2027. Earlier completion of the DFS would allow USAR to m...

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