{
  "id": 10840701,
  "title": "LS Eco Energy Builds Non-China Production Base for Defense-Grade Rare Earth Materials",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/30/ls-eco-energy-builds-non-china-production-base-for-defense-grade-rare",
  "topic": "tech",
  "section": "Tech",
  "published": "2026-09-30T03:06:52.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Korea IT Times",
    "slug": "korea-it-times",
    "url": "https://www.koreaittimes.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=157665"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": null,
  "summary": "LS Eco Energy, a South Korean company, is establishing a non-China production base for defense-grade rare earth materials in Vietnam, aiming to secure alternative sources as the U.S. tightens restrictions on Chinese materials for defense procurement. The company plans to invest 11.6 billion won in a samarium metal production facility in Ho Chi Minh City, which will have an annual capacity of 240 tons of samarium metal. This production capacity will support the manufacturing of 700 to 1,000 tons of SmCo permanent magnets per year, crucial for aerospace and defense applications. The project is part of a broader strategy to expand LS Eco Energy's portfolio beyond samarium, including dysprosium, terbium, and NdPr, to cater to various high-performance industries.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}