India Targets 5,000 Tonnes Rare Earth Magnet Production by 2030, Boosts Lithium Exploration
New Delhi, March 25, 2026 – India is accelerating efforts to expand domestic production of rare earth permanent magnets and explore critical minerals like lithium, targeting a production capacity of 5,000 tonnes by 2030, the government said on Wednesday.Addressing the Lok Sabha, Minister of State for Science and Technology, Jitendra Singh highlighted that India’s current demand for rare earth magnets, estimated at 4,000 tonnes, is expected to nearly double to 8,000 tonnes by 2030, underscoring the urgency to scale up domestic capabilities.
A pilot project on neodymium-iron-boron (NdFeB) magnets has already been launched, while a samarium-cobalt magnet plant in Visakhapatnam has become operational with an initial capacity of 500 tonnes per year.
According to the Department of Atomic Energy, this capacity will be expanded to 2,000 tonnes in the next phaseand further scaled up to 5,000 tonnes by 2030.
On lithium exploration, the minister said preliminary surveys are underway in Degana, with further exploration expected soon. Similar efforts are ongoing in Reasi district.
Rare earth elements and lithium are critical for sectors such as electric vehicles, renewable energy, electronics, defense, aerospace, and space technologies, making them essential for India’s clean energy transition and advanced manufacturing ecosystem.
The government is coordinating across ministries to fast-track exploration and development of these strategic resources. Policy reforms, including amendments to the Atomic Energy framework, have opened up private sector participation in critical mineral exploration, while maintaining safeguards for strategic resources like uranium.
Additionally, the government has announced rare earth corridors in Tamil Nadu, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, and Kerala to strengthen domestic processing and value addition.
The minister noted that rare earth elements occur in both beach sand and rock formations, with states like Rajasthan, Gujarat, and Jharkhand holding significant rock-based deposits, which are more complex to explore.
The initiative is expected to reduce import dependence and position India as a key player in the global supply chain for critical minerals.
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