Vulcan Elements

Vulcan Elements is a manufacturer of rare earth magnets based in Durham, North Carolina. Founded in 2023 by John Maslin, a former U.S. Navy officer and Harvard Business School graduate, the company produces sintered permanent neodymium iron boron (NdFeB) magnets - components that convert electricity into motion and are used in AI data centres, semiconductor fabrication equipment, drones, robotics, satellites, electric vehicles and military platforms.

The company's technical work spans rare earth magnet manufacturing, magnet recycling and recovery, rare earth oxide processing and high-purity rare earth metal reduction. With ReElement Technologies, Vulcan Elements operates a 100% vertically integrated domestic supply chain that processes end-of-life magnets and electronic waste into high-purity rare earth oxides, which are then reduced to metals and finished magnets. The company holds contracts with every branch of the U.S. military and serves American and allied technology companies across defense and commercial sectors.

A magnet facility planned for Benson, North Carolina is intended to have a capacity of 10,000 metric tonnes and would be the largest magnet factory in the world outside China. The context for the build-out is concentration: China accounts for more than 90% of global rare earth magnet manufacturing. In November 2025 Vulcan Elements announced a $1.4bn partnership with the United States Government, comprising a $620m Direct Loan from the Department of War's Office of Strategic Capital and $50m in federal incentives from the Department of Commerce.