NEW YORK: A US rare earth company announced Thursday an agreement with the Pentagon granting the government a stake in the venture in exchange for billions of dollars to finance additional manufacturing.
Las Vegas-based MP Materials described the arrangement as a “transformational public-private partnership” that includes a “multibillion-dollar package of investments” and long-term commitments from the Department of Defense .
It will allow MP to construct a second domestic magnet manufacturing facility, according to a company press release, and to expand production at MP’s Mount Pass, California facility — the only large-scale rare earth mining and processing operation in North America.
Under the arrangement, the Pentagon agreed to purchase $400 million of newly created MP preferred stock, convertible to common stock.
Ultimately, the agreement will result in the DoD holding 15 percent of MP’s common shares, making it the company’s largest shareholder, MP said in its press release.
It is rare for the Pentagon to take stakes in private companies. AFP asked the Pentagon for comment on the announcement but had yet to hear back.
Rare earths are critical building blocks in many US weapons systems and are also needed for smartphones, automobiles and other goods. The dearth of capacity in the United States — and the continued dominance of China — has emerged as a growing worry in Washington.
China controls close to 70 percent of global rare earth production, according to some estimates.
MP said the partnership with DoD would “catalyze domestic production, strengthen industrial resilience, and secure critical supply chains for high-growth industries and future dual use applications.”
The new magnet facility, whose location has yet to be chosen, is expected to begin operating in 2028, bringing MP’s total US rare earth magnet manufacturing capacity to an estimated 10,000 metric tons, the press release said.
The partnership between MP and the Pentagon includes a 10-year agreement establishing a price floor of $110 per kilogram for MP products and DoD assurance that 100 percent of the magnets made at the second factory will be purchased by the Pentagon and commercial customers.
Shares of MP finished the day 50.6 percent higher.
Pentagon takes stake in US rare earth company
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Pentagon takes stake in US rare earth company
Shooter kills 9 at Canadian school and residence
- The shooter was found dead with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound
- A total of 27 people were wounded in the shooting, including two with serious injuries
TORONTO: A shooter killed nine people and wounded dozens more at a secondary school and a residence in a remote part of western Canada on Tuesday, authorities said, in one of the deadliest mass shootings in the country’s history.
The suspect, described by police in an initial emergency alert as a “female in a dress with brown hair,” was found dead with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound, officials said.
The attack occurred in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, a picturesque mountain valley town in the foothills of the Rockies.
A total of 27 people were wounded in the shooting, including two with serious injuries, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said in a statement.
Prime Minister Mark Carney said he was “devastated” by the “horrific acts of violence” and announced he was suspending plans to travel to the Munich Security Conference on Wednesday, where he had been set to hold talks with allies on transatlantic defense readiness.
Police said an alert was issued about an active shooter at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School on Tuesday afternoon.
As police searched the school, they found six people shot dead. A seventh person with a gunshot wound died en route to hospital.
Separately, police found two more bodies at a residence in the town.
The residence is “believed to be connected to the incident,” police said.
At the school, “an individual believed to be the shooter was also found deceased with what appears to be a self?inflicted injury,” police said.
Police have not yet released any information about the age of the shooter or the victims.
“We are devastated by the loss of life and the profound impact this tragedy has had on families, students, staff, and our entire town,” the municipality of Tumbler Ridge said in a statement.
Tumbler Ridge student Darian Quist told public broadcaster CBC that he was in his mechanics class when there was an announcement that the school was in lockdown.
He said that initially he “didn’t think anything was going on,” but started receiving “disturbing” photos about the carnage.
“It set in what was happening,” Quist said.
He said he stayed in lockdown for more than two hours until police stormed in, ordering everyone to put their hands up before escorting them out of the school.
Trent Ernst, a local journalist and a former substitute teacher at Tumbler Ridge, expressed shock over the shooting at the school, where one of his children has just graduated.
He noted that school shootings have been a rarity occurring every few years in Canada compared with the United States, where they are far more frequent.
“I used to kind of go: ‘Look at Canada, look at who we are.’ But then that one school shooting every 2.5 years happens in your town and things... just go off the rails,” he told AFP.
‘Heartbreak’
While mass shootings are extremely rare in Canada, last April, a vehicle attack that targeted a Filipino cultural festival in Vancouver killed 11 people.
British Columbia Premier David Eby called the latest violence “unimaginable.”
Nina Krieger, British Columbia’s minister of public safety, said it was “one of the worst mass shootings in our province’s and country’s history.”
The Canadian Olympic Committee, whose athletes are competing in the 2026 Winter Games in Italy, said Wednesday it was “heartbroken by the news of the horrific school shooting.”
Ken Floyd, commander of the police’s northern district, said: “This has been an incredibly difficult and emotional day for our community, and we are grateful for the cooperation shown as officers continue their work to advance the investigation.”
Floyd told reporters the shooter was the same suspect police described as “female” in a prior emergency alert to community members, but declined to provide any details on the suspect’s identity.
The police said officers were searching other homes and properties in the community to see if there were additional sites connected to the incident.
Tumbler Ridge, a quiet town with roughly 2,400 residents, is more than 1,100 kilometers (680 miles) north of Vancouver, British Columbia’s largest city.
“There are no words sufficient for the heartbreak our community is experiencing tonight,” the municipality said.
