Recycling Rush: Cyclic Materials Secures $75M to Break China's REE Grip

TORONTO, ON – January 23, 2026 – In a significant move to counter global supply chain vulnerabilities, Canadian cleantech firm Cyclic Materials has closed an oversubscribed USD $75 million Series C funding round. The investment, led by accounts advised by T. Rowe Price Associates Inc. and supported by the Canada Growth Fund (CGF), brings the company’s total equity funding to over $162 million and signals a major acceleration in the Western world's race to secure a domestic supply of rare earth elements (REEs).

This new capital injection is earmarked for scaling the company's innovative recycling infrastructure across North America and Europe. By transforming electronic waste into high-value critical minerals, Cyclic Materials is positioning itself as a cornerstone of a new, resilient supply chain essential for the future of AI, robotics, defense, and electric mobility.

The High-Stakes Game of Critical Minerals

The global economy's advanced sectors run on a group of 17 metallic elements that are anything but common. Rare earth elements are the bedrock of high-performance permanent magnets found in everything from electric vehicle motors and wind turbines to the sophisticated servers powering the AI revolution. Yet, the supply chain for these materials is notoriously fragile and geographically concentrated.

Currently, China dominates the landscape, controlling an estimated 70-90% of global rare earth refining and magnet production. This dominance creates a significant geopolitical vulnerability for Western nations, a risk underscored by past and potential export restrictions. With global demand for magnetic REEs projected to nearly triple by 2035, the current project pipeline is expected to fall short by approximately 30%, creating a massive supply gap.

Recycling presents a powerful strategic alternative. Globally, less than 1% of rare earth elements are currently recovered from end-of-life products, representing a vast and untapped resource.

“This investment underscores the urgency of building a secure supply chain for rare earths that power the defense, AI and robotics revolution,” said Ahmad Ghahreman, CEO and founder of Cyclic Materials. “The recycling of EOL products for magnet REEs recovery is the fastest way to create a resilient supply of these critical metals in Western countries, and likely the only viable source of heavy rare earths outside China.”

A Green and Rapid Alternative to Mining

Cyclic Materials is tackling this challenge with a two-stage process that is not only faster but also significantly more sustainable than traditional mining. Conventional rare earth extraction is an environmentally taxing process, known for its heavy water consumption and the generation of vast quantities of toxic and sometimes radioactive waste.

In stark contrast, the company’s technology boasts a 61.2% reduction in carbon footprint and slashes water use to just 5% of what mining requires. Furthermore, its proprietary MagCycle℠ (physical processing) and REEPure℠ (hydrometallurgical) technologies achieve recovery rates exceeding 98% for valuable rare earths from sources like discarded EV motors, data center hardware, and MRI machines.

Perhaps most critically in the race for resource independence, recycling infrastructure offers a significant speed advantage. While new mining projects can take a decade or more to navigate permitting and construction, industrial-scale recycling facilities like those planned by Cyclic Materials can be deployed in just a few years, offering a lower-risk and more scalable pathway to securing a domestic supply.

Building a North American Supply Chain

With its new war chest, Cyclic Materials is rapidly expanding its "Spoke and Hub" operational model. This strategy involves a network of regional "Spoke" facilities that collect and pre-process end-of-life products, creating a magnet-rich feedstock. This material is then transported to a central "Hub" for final hydrometallurgical processing into high-purity recycled Mixed Rare Earth Oxides (rMREO).

The company’s first commercial-scale Spoke facility began operations in Mesa, Arizona, in the spring of 2025, anchoring its efforts to serve the burgeoning US manufacturing sector. This is paired with the development of its first Hub and a new Center of Excellence in Kingston, Ontario—the city where the company was founded. The Kingston facility is designed to convert 500 tonnes of feedstock annually into market-ready rare earth oxides, with operations slated to begin in the first quarter of this year.

This physical expansion is fortified by a growing network of strategic partnerships. A landmark 10-year exclusive agreement will see Cyclic Materials recycle 100% of magnet production by-products from VACUUMSCHMELZE’s (VAC) new factory in Sumter, South Carolina. The company has also forged feedstock partnerships with firms like Lime Micromobility to create a circular supply from used e-scooter motors, and has offtake agreements with industry giants like Solvay to supply the refined materials back into the magnet value chain.

A New Era of Strategic Investment

The capital infusion from T. Rowe Price and the Canada Growth Fund is more than just a vote of confidence in a single company; it reflects a broader strategic alignment between private capital and public policy. Governments across the West are actively working to de-risk critical mineral supply chains.

Initiatives like the EU's Critical Raw Materials Act, which sets ambitious domestic recycling targets, and the US Inflation Reduction Act, which incentivizes non-Chinese mineral sourcing, have created a powerful tailwind for companies like Cyclic Materials.

“As demand for rare earth elements accelerates across advanced manufacturing, electrification, AI and robotics, Cyclic Materials is addressing a critical supply challenge with a scalable and commercially grounded solution,” noted Vineet Khanna, an investment analyst at T. Rowe Price.

The Canada Growth Fund’s participation directly supports Canada's own $3.8 billion Critical Minerals Strategy. “This transaction positions Cyclic Materials to accelerate its research and development and fast-track the commercialization of its breakthrough technology here in Canada,” said Yannick Beaudoin, President and CEO of Canada Growth Fund Investment Management.

By turning today's waste into tomorrow's most vital resources, Cyclic Materials is not just building a business but helping to construct the foundations of technological sovereignty for a new industrial era. This local, circular supply of rare earths promises to fuel innovation at an unprecedented speed, securing the raw materials needed to power the next generation of advanced technology.