Japan’s Daikin to launch rare earth magnet recycling program
Release Date:
2026-04-21
“Preparations are still underway toward its planned full-scale launch in 2027,” a representative from Daikin told Fastmarkets. “The project is currently in a preparatory phase.”
Under the program, Daikin will collect compressors from used commercial air conditioners and Tokyo Eco Recycle, with support from Hitachi, will dismantle them and extract rare earth magnets; Shin-Etsu Chemical will then recycle the extracted magnets and produce new ones, the announcement said.
Japan is the world’s largest rare earth magnet manufacturer outside China.
End-of-life rare earth magnet feedstock is primarily sourced from wind turbines and electric vehicle (EV) motors, with smaller contributions coming from other types of e-waste, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).
In April 2024, the Chinese government introduced export controls on seven heavy rare earth elements — samarium, gadolinium, terbium, dysprosium, lutetium, scandium and yttrium — as well as the permanent magnets that contain them.
In early January, China “strengthened” its export controls against Japan by prohibiting export of dual-use items to Japanese military users, for Japan’s military use, or to any other end users who may enhance Japan’s military capabilities.
China’s export controls prompted a rush to secure new sources, with several new projects announced to boost supply of rare earths and magnets.
Other notable rare earth magnet recyclers include Canadian junior Mkango, which launched a UK rare earth separation and recycling facility in collaboration with Birmingham University in January, and Cyclic Materials, which signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Canadian specialty materials and rare earth magnet producer Neo Performance Materials in March.
And Caremag, a subsidiary of French rare earths technical consultancy Carester which is building a large-scale rare earth recycling and refining facility in Lacq, in southern France.
In the week to Thursday April 16, Chinese neodymium-praseodymium (NdPr)prices edged up, while yttrium prices continued to soar in Europe as supplies remain severely constrained.
From: Fastmarkets
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