In short: Not a listed name — the pending acquisition that carries the whole magnet thesis. "One of the only rare earth magnet manufacturers in the western world… there's four in the world. There's three in Japan and VAC in Germany." Owns a "$600 million," 300-400,000 sq ft operating magnet plant in South Carolina he visited two weeks earlier, plus plants in Germany, Finland and Slovakia. Close expected "the first part of next year" pending government approvals.
Vacuumschmelze is a private German company that makes rare-earth permanent magnets — the small, extremely strong magnets inside electric-car motors, factory and humanoid robots, wind turbines and guided weapons. You cannot buy it directly; it matters because Energy Fuels has agreed to acquire it, with closing expected in early 2027 once governments sign off.
Why it is the load-bearing piece of the whole pitch: by management's count there are only four magnet makers in the world outside China, and three of them are Japanese and effectively reserved for Japan's own car industry. That leaves VAC as the one available Western option. It already runs a $600 million, 300-400,000 square-foot plant in South Carolina, plus plants in Germany, Finland and Slovakia — so Energy Fuels would be buying a working factory and, more importantly, the know-how, rather than trying to learn a difficult manufacturing craft on its own.
The flip side is that until the deal closes, the "mine-to-magnet" company being described does not exist yet. Regulatory approval in Germany for the sale of a strategically sensitive magnet maker is not a formality, and the purchase has to be paid for.
11:44Well, let's say outside of China. There's four in the world. There's three in Japan and VAC in Germany. That's really it. VAC has an existing operating facility in South Carolina that we're going to own. I actually just visited that facility two weeks ago and it's unbelievable. It's a $600 million facility.
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