What Makes Heavy Rare Earths A Critical Element For America? Andrew Legget Wed, November 11, 2026 at 4:30 AM EST 5 min read HRE.AX -2.86% GC=F +0.71% HG=F +1.09% TREO -1.59% In school, students learn the periodic table.
While few, other than those truly passionate about pursuing science, can name every element on that table, many are familiar with elements on that table, such as gold, copper, oxygen, and nitrogen, to name but a few.
However, there is an entire family of elements, known as heavy rare earths, that, despite having names like dysprosium and terbium, are increasingly behind some of the most important innovations in the world.
While only half of the family of what is called rare earths, the supply of heavy rare earths is becoming a critical focus of governments around the world, especially the US.
So, what makes these relatively unknown minerals so important?
Heavy rare earths comprise around 8 elements of the overall 17 elements that make up the rare earth family. With properties that allow them to operate reliably under demanding conditions, they have become critical components in the manufacture of America's most advanced technologies.
Nowhere else does reliability under demanding conditions matter more than, arguably, in defense.
Heavy rare earths are used to create high-performance magnets used in various critical military systems, including aircraft, submarines, precision-guided weapons, radar technology, and unmanned aerial vehicles, just to scratch the surface. Therefore, the reliable supply of such elements is important to ensure that the American military remains at the top of the technological pyramid.
Of course, it doesn't just end at defense applications. Heavy rare earths support a range of other industrial technologies important to America's growth, such as electric vehicles, wind turbines, robotics, aerospace, and other advanced electronics, such as erbium, which is used in fibre optic communications.
While alternatives exist, replacing heavy rare-earth-enhanced magnets can involve trade offs including performance, size, weight, and efficiency.
China is the world's dominant nation in relation to rare earths.
According to the International Energy Agency, China accounted for around 60% of global mined production of light rare earths and just over 40% of heavy rare earths in 2024.
However, its influence grows even stronger further down the supply chain. It controls approximately 91% of global refining and 94% of permanent magnet manufacturing. This means a significant part of the rare earth supply chain is centralised in one country.
America is particularly exposed. The US Geological Survey estimates that the country had 100% net import reliance for heavy rare-earth compounds and metals in 2025. China was a leading source for most of the elements that make up heavy rare earths, including supplying 100% of America's terbium and holmium.
Essentially, the supply of materials that are critical to American defense technology is dominated by a country that can be considered a rival to America's geopolitical goals.
China's export restrictions in April 2025 demonstrated what this dependence can mean. The control required exporters to obtain licences for seven heavy and medium rare earth elements, which included dysprosium and terbium, both essential for high-performance military hardware.
Export volumes fell sharply, leaving manufacturers in the United States, amongst other countries, struggling to secure supply, and some automakers were forced to reduce production or temporarily close facilities.
America's challenge, therefore, is to build its own sovereign supply chain, such as what it hopes its 'mine-to-magnet' strategy can create, to ensure that in the event of any geopolitical conflict, its supply of these critical elements cannot be shut off completely.
One company hoping to help America with that goal is Texas-based Tactical Resources (NASDAQ:TREO).
The rare earth company is hoping to extract rare-earth material from over 1.5 million tonnes of material that is lying in a quarry through its Peak Project in Sierra Blanca. Because this material is already stockpiled and accessible, it provides the possibility for faster supply of rare earths than a brand-new mine, which needs to be developed, approved, and mined, can provide.
What makes Tactical's Peak Project particularly interesting is its reported heavy rare earth profile.
In a dataset of 40 samples, it was found that heavy rare earths averaged 2.9 times the concentration of light rare earths, meaning that its project could potentially contain more of the exact type of elements America relies on other countries the most for.
Much of the strategic focus has been on securing more domestic production, but alternative sources of heavy rare earths such as dysprosium and terbium are particularly important given China's position in processing and supply.
The most-followed narrative on the Simply Wall St community highlights Tactical Resources as a potential new source of heavy rare earths for America. Its Peak Project in Texas is investigating around 4 million tonnes of already-mined quarry material, with early testing suggesting heavy rare earth concentrations roughly twice those of light rare earths. While promising, the project remains at an early stage, with a resource estimate and commercial-scale processing yet to be proven.
Tactical Resources has a marketing services agreement with Simply Wall St. Details on compensation and other important information can be found in the disclosure and disclaimer at the end of the narrative.
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Simply Wall St analyst Andrew Legget and Simply Wall St have no position in any of the companies mentioned. This article is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.
