On February 14, 2024, as part of the International Exhibition and Forum “Russia” in Moscow, a special investment contract (SPIC) was signed for the project to establish Russia's first large-scale production of permanent rare-earth magnets in the city of Glazov, Udmurt Republic.
The parties to the SPIC were the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation, as well as enterprises of Rosatom's Fuel Division - Rusatom Metal Tech LLC (an integrator company of Rosatom's Fuel Division in the Metallurgy area) and LLC Elemash Magnet, which acts as a direct investor in the project implementation. The planned production capacity of the future site is 1,000 tons per year, which is enough to approximately fully meet the current needs of the domestic industry.
The total area of the territory will be 20 thousand square meters. The demand for such products in the world is growing due to the transition to clean energy and electric transport, as permanent magnets are the most important component in the manufacture of electric motors and generators of wind power plants.
In accordance with the state requirements for products (in accordance with Russian Government Resolution No. 719 “On Confirmation of Production of Industrial Products on the Territory of the Russian Federation”), Rosatom will gradually ensure full localization of production of permanent rare-earth magnets by the time the new facility in Glazov is commissioned. The SPIC will be valid until the production is launched, which will make it possible to cover the needs for supplies of magnetic products for new wind farms, electric propulsion projects and other industries.
“As part of the project, it is planned to establish a plant for large-tonnage production of permanent rare-earth magnets in a full cycle in the Udmurt Republic, with a design capacity of about 1,000 tons of magnets per year. The new plant will guarantee import substitution of supplies of permanent magnets, which are crucial components for industries such as wind power and electric transport, and will also give an impetus to the development of mining and processing projects in the field of rare and rare-earth metals. This will ensure constant demand for a number of key rare-earth elements,” said Denis Manturov, Deputy Prime Minister and Head of the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Russia.
“By 2028, it is planned to reach a production capacity of about 1,000 tons of permanent rare-earth magnets per year based on the domestic mineral raw material base, while there is a prospect of expanding production to 3,000 tons after 2030. The special investment contract signed today clearly demonstrates the importance for the country of creating a large-tonnage production of permanent rare-earth magnets,” said Andrey Andrianov, General Director of Rusatom Metal Tech LLC.
“The construction of the new plant symbolizes a huge step for our company into a new technological era of permanent magnet production. This will be Russia's first large-capacity production facility based on dry technology, which will make it possible to manufacture high-grade magnetic products with minimal costs. This will be possible thanks to the most modern equipment and selected technological solutions. Hydrometallurgical processing will ensure the return of technological waste to the production process, thus closing the technological cycle,” emphasized Valentin Fetisov, General Director of Elemash Magnet LLC.
“Specialized personnel are needed for such narrowly focused production. For example, Rosatom has introduced additional support measures for students at the Glazov Polytechnic College as part of the Professionality program. In addition, the renovation of the educational institution's dormitory is also in the future plans - while the investor will start research. We have also developed a project “Work in Udmurtia” to attract specialists to the region. These are packages of offers on employment and social guarantees in the republic, which are necessary for those who decided to move to us with their families. According to the project it is planned to attract more than 7 thousand people to the region in the period of 2024-2026”, - added the Head of the Udmurt Republic Alexander Brechalov.
Reference
A special investment contract is a public policy instrument aimed at stimulating investment in industrial production in Russia. As part of the SPIC, the investor enters into an agreement with the state, which sets out the company's obligations to implement an investment project, as well as the state's obligations to ensure the stability of business conditions and provide state support measures. The conclusion of the SPIC is the basis for obtaining the "Made in Russia" status (necessary, in particular, to fulfill the conditions for the supply of permanent magnets for a new wind generation).
The Fuel Division of Rosatom State Corporation (TVEL Fuel Company of Rosatom) includes enterprises for the manufacture of nuclear fuel, conversion and enrichment of uranium, production of gas centrifuges, as well as research and design organizations. Being the only exclusive of nuclear fuel for Russian nuclear power plants, TVEL provides fuel to a total of 70 power reactors in 15 countries, research reactors in nine countries of the world, as well as transport reactors of the Russian nuclear fleet. Every sixth power reactor in the world is powered by TVEL fuel. ROSATOM's Fuel Division is the world's largest producer of enriched uranium, as well as the leader of the global market for stable isotopes. The Fuel Division is actively developing new businesses in the field of chemistry, metallurgy, energy storage technologies, 3D printing, digital products, as well as decommissioning of nuclear facilities. Rosatom's industry integrators for additive technologies and power storage systems have been created in the TVEL Fuel Company circuit. http://www.tvel.ru
Rusatom Metallurgical Technologies LLC is a divisional integrator of the TVEL Fuel Company of Rosatom in the Metallurgy direction. The tasks of developing the metallurgical business of the Fuel Company include, in particular, expanding the customer base in Russia and abroad, developing production capacities, and creating new alliances and partnerships. The technological partners of Rusatom Metallurgical Technologies LLC are enterprises specializing in the production of products from refractory and light metals, as well as alloys based on them. The integrator consolidates the competencies of TVEL JSC enterprises in the field of metallurgy: ChMZ JSC, MSZ JSC, NZHK PJSC, Elemash Magnit LLC, NPO Centrotech LLC, VNIINM JSC. The scientific potential, technological competencies, and qualified personnel of the enterprises allow us to carry out work on launching into mass production of new materials and promising product ranges, as well as quickly respond to the needs of leading industries and high-tech companies.
Since 2020, Rosatom has been engaged in the gradual localization of production of permanent rare-earth magnets of the neodymium-iron-boron system in the Fuel Division. The first REM magnets produced by Elemash Magnit LLC (part of Rosatom's TVEL Fuel Company) were delivered to the wind energy division of Rosatom - NovaWind JSC for electric generators of the Karmalinovskaya wind power plant in the Stavropol region.
Currently, Russia has all the necessary resources to create a production chain for REM magnets. In particular, the Rosatom State Corporation has competencies in all key areas, including: extraction of raw materials (projects of the Mining Division); research base (JSC Science and Innovations); as well as the existing and future production capacity of the Fuel Division. Additionally, the stability of the vertical chain is ensured by cooperation with the leaders of the rare metals industry, in particular, the Solikamsk Magnesium Plant.
The Russian industry faces the goal of ensuring technological sovereignty and the transition to the latest technologies in the shortest possible time. The state and large domestic companies are directing resources to accelerate the development of the domestic research, infrastructure, scientific and technological base. The introduction of innovations and new high-tech equipment allows Rosatom and its enterprises to occupy new niches in the market, increasing the competitiveness of the nuclear industry and the Russian industry as a whole.
