Rare Earths & Magnets: Expanding European Capacities 

PASSENGER among the protagonists of the momentum-building for a resilient, competitive, and sustainable European magnet value chain 

On 29 and 30 October, PASSENGER took the stage at the Rare Earths & Magnets: Expanding European Capacities conference, hosted at the iconic Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart.  

Co-organised by EIT Raw Materials and PASSENGER, the project final conference was embedded in the EIT Rare earths and Magnets Strategic Impact Group Network (SIGN) event.  This two-day meeting brought together 150 representatives of the entire European rare earth and magnet ecosystem (from mining experts to OEMs, from researchers to policymakers) to accelerate Europe’s journey toward strategic autonomy in critical materials. 

 Need to turn intent into action 

The event was opened by EIT Raw Materials Bernd Schäfer, who gave the context for the contributions and discussions ahead. He highlighted how REEs and permanent magnets are at the heart of Europe technological development and how urgent it is to establish EU own and independent value chains, rather than relying on fluctuating and unstable markets linked to the uncertainty of the global geopolitical context. Key to the achievement of the scope are initiatives supporting capacity building, including investments in technology development and infrastructures, establishment of policy frameworks to allow industrial scale up, and support talent and skill development. 

During the two days of the event, through high-quality keynote presentations and engaged panel discussions, representatives from all the main stakeholders group contributed to the dialogue on how to guarantee Europe competitiveness in REEs supply and permanent magnets production, providing valuable insights and actionable steps to enable this effort. The list of speakers is available on the event agenda here. Key messages include: 

• The importance of dedicated policies like the flagship Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA), which is supporting the achievement of Europe self-reliance in raw materials supply, the efforts to seal strategic partnerships with third countries to diversify development, production and trades, and how strategic projects under the CRMA are instrumental to increase EU capacity to extract, process and recycle strategic raw materials and diversify EU supplies from third countries. 

• The need to consider alternative pricing mechanisms for rare earths, addressing how Europe can mobilise the estimated €2 billion investment needed to build its full value chain by 2030 

• Sustainable magnet technologies as crucial building block for the future of strategic technologies for the digital and green transition, like electric mobility, whose demand is expected to substantially increase in the very near future (EU need of EV traction motors annually estimated in 21 million by 2037) 

• Collaboration and alignment in policy, investment, and partnerships are crucial to the establishment of an EU resilient and stable value chain for REEs and permanent magnets 

PASSENGER: Innovation in Action 

As part of the event, the PASSENGER project held its final conference, showcasing REE-free and sustainable magnet technologies developed throughout the project lifetime.  

The coordinator Rodolfo Miranda (IMDEA Nanoscience) held a speck during the event opening session, presenting the PASSENGER journey and highlighting the main achievements, milestones and the long-term perspective and impact generated by the project’s results. Specific contributions were delivered by other partners:  

• Karla Kosmač (Kolektor) and Paolo Bernardi (Industrie ILPEA) presented the high-performance ferrite magnets developed by PASSENGER, from ferrite powders to magnets manufacturing and testing and pilot-scale production progress 

• Martin Dopler (METALPINE) and Semih Ener (TU Darmstadt) showcased the strong potential application of manganese-based magnets, ideal candidates as “gap magnets” for use in strategic applications (e.g. when corrosion resistance is needed)   

• Fabio Scaffidi Muta (Centro Ricerche Fiat) and Martin Krengel & Matthias Schmude (Wilo Group) validated ferrite magnet performance in automotive and water pump systems, showing the suitability of PASSENGER magnets for applications that are key  

PASSENGER’s impact spans across economy, environment, and safety, proving that European innovation can deliver optimal alternatives to rare earth-based magnets and thus strongly support EU competitiveness and self-reliance for the permanent magnets value chain. 

The Ecosystem in Motion: CRMs4EU session 

During the event, a special session was dedicated to one of the major outcomes of PASSENGER: the establishment of the CRMs4EU cluster, which (as of October 2025) counts 17 EU-funded projects working to advance research and innovation to enable stable and resilient supply and value chains of critical raw materials. The cluster was greatly celebrated by representatives from 5 projects: 

• MAGELLAN, presented by Alexandre Damiens (Orano Group) 

• REEsilience and HARMONY, introduced by Maëva Pratlong (Steinbeis Europa Zentrum) 

• GREENE, pitched by the coordinator Kristina Žužek, (Jožef Stefan Institute) 

• REEPRODUCE – Felipe Guerrero, Business Developer, JGI Hydro Metal and Rare Earths Recycling 

Moreover, 2 other projects from the cluster, PERMANET and REMhub, were featured in the online poster session that was specifically created for the event.

All these projects are applying their unique approach and tacking specific scientific aspects to support the establishment of a resilient permanent magnets value chain, either by developing technology and processes for the recycling of EoL permanent magnets, improving the quality and output of magnets manufactured using secondary recovered REEs, as well as applying grain-boundaries engineering to the development of high performance permanent magnets with reduced REE content. 

 A Shared Commitment  

As the conference concluded with an exclusive tour of the Sindelfinden Mercedes-Benz assembly plant, one message resonated across all participants: Europe’s window is narrow but the will to act is strong. 

Using standards and creating new ones is essential for turning innovations into real market success and making industry more sustainable in the long term. Many studies clearly show how important this is. Anyone developing new technologies, materials, or applications can benefit greatly from standards. In fact, using them can be a key factor in whether an innovation thrives or fails. Although there’s no fully mature set of standards specifically for Rare Earth‑free Permanent Magnets (RE-Free PMs), some related shifts are underway. For example, the Critical Raw Materials Act[1] in the EU is pushing for reduced dependency on rare earths, broader material substitution, and will most likely incentivize standards and certification related to RE‑free options.

This intelligence bulletin aims to shed light on the current standardisation activities related to permanent magnets and to identify potential opportunities for the development of standards addressing rare-earth-free permanent magnets.

Introduction to Standardisation

Standards are technical specifications, agreed by the relevant stakeholders, subject to voluntary use, which are published by a recognized standardisation organisation.

Standards are a market intelligence tool for companies and SMEs, a quality tool for societal stakeholders and a tool for the deployment of regulations and policies for public authorities. Existing studies present standards as a catalyser of trade, and they are present in a significative percentage of the world commerce exchanges. According to the Public Procurement Directive[2], they can be cited as technical specifications in public procurements procedures. They can also be used as a reference in technical regulation and legislation. As an example, the so-called “harmonised standards” are the most practical and fast way to comply with the requirements of European Directives.

Standardisation is the process of drafting, agreement, and publication of standards. It is open to all interested parties, including companies, SMEs, universities, research institutes, associations, NGOs, public authorities, etc.

According to the European Industrial Strategy[3] and the European Green Deal[4], standardisation plays a crucial role in the sustainability and competitiveness of European industry. This is also acknowledged in the EU Strategy on Standardisation[5], focusing on the benefits of raising new standards from innovative knowledge. Companies and SMEs can be favoured from being the tractors of new standards covering their innovations, or some aspects of them, to protect their market expectations by creating confidence in customers, avoid barriers and leading the definition of new requirements instead of adapting their production practices and equipment to comply with external ones. Therefore, participation in standardisation activities should be a part of the commercial and exploitation strategy of companies, universities and research organisations.

STANDARDISATION AND PERMANET MAGNETS

Permanent magnets (especially rare earth permanent magnets like NdFeB, SmCo) are critical enablers of green technologies (EVs, wind turbines, electric motors, generators, consumer electronics, etc.). However, growing geopolitical risk, environmental concerns, supply chain fragility, and regulatory pressure are reshaping their landscape.

PASSENGER (Pilot Action for Securing a Sustainable European Next Generation of Efficient RE-free Magnets) is developing an innovative way to produce permanent magnets without rare-earth materials and is piloting the new magnets in the electromobility sector.

Rare‐earth‐free permanent magnets are magnetic materials that do not use (or use minimal) rare earth elements (REEs) like Neodymium (Nd), Praseodymium (Pr), Dysprosium (Dy), Terbium (Tb), etc. They typically rely on materials such as:

• Ferrites (e.g. strontium ferrite, barium ferrite)
• Manganese‑based magnets (e.g. Mn‑Bi)
• Other transition metal compounds (e.g. cobalt, FeNi, etc.)
• New composite / hybrid materials or enhancement of traditional ferrites through nano‑structuring, improved sintering, etc.

These RE‑free magnets generally offer lower maximum energy product (BH_max), possibly lower thermal stability or coercivity under some conditions than the best rare‐earth magnets; but they have big advantages in cost, supply risk, sustainability, and environmental footprint.

At present, the standardisation around permanent magnets tends to focus on materials which include rare earths (especially NdFeB, SmCo) or ferrite (which is RE‑free) but often as a lower grade class. The move toward new RE‑free materials reveals several gaps and emerging needs.

Existing standards covering Premanent Magnets

STANDARDISATION CHALLENGES AND OPPRTUNNITIES FOR RE-FREE PERMANET MAGNETS

In the field of standardisation, some progress has been made regarding permanent magnets, although the path is still at an early stage. However, for rare-earth-free permanent magnets, virtually no standardisation work has yet been undertaken.

Most of the ongoing developments related to permanent magnets concern testing methods, measurement techniques, traceability, and terminology – in other words, the supporting infrastructure. While these efforts do not currently encompass rare-earth-free permanent magnets, they are nonetheless valuable: before a material can be claimed to be “rare-earth-free,” agreed testing methods must exist to verify that its content falls below the defined thresholds.

For rare-earth-free permanent magnets, there remains a wide and largely unexplored area for standardisation. Advancing in this direction represents both a significant challenge and an important opportunity to address a field with strong future potential.

Some aspects that could be subject to standardisation include:

1. Performance Benchmarks for Novel RE‑Free Materials

Many new RE‑free materials have not yet been fully validated over temperature, mechanical stress, long‑term ageing etc. Standards may not yet exist that cover such performance for these new materials.

2. Measurement Methods Adapted to lower performance materials

Some test methods are optimised for high energy magnets (with rare earths). RE‑free magnets (especially ferrites, MnBi, composites) might require adapted protocols, tolerances, calibration.

3. Material / Composition Definitions

Existing standards define ferrite magnet types, classes etc. But for less common alloys (like MnAlC etc.), there’s a lack of standardized definitions or property class descriptions.

4. Design for Use / Application Performance

Motors and other devices using RE‑free magnets need standardisation for how magnets are integrated (mounting, bonding, assembly) to ensure mechanical stability, thermal management, demagnetization risk etc.

5. Environmental & Sustainability / Life‑Cycle / Eco‑Labelling

There is increasing pressure to evaluate environmental impacts (mining, processing, emissions, recycling). Standards for life‑cycle assessment, carbon footprint, recyclability etc. are still underdeveloped specifically for RE‑free magnets.

WHAT TO MONITOR MOVING FORWARD

To stay ahead of developments in rare-earth-free permanent magnets and the evolving standardisation landscape in this area, stakeholders should closely monitor developments in draft standards or working group formations that specifically call for rare earth-free or rare earth-reduced magnets.

Traditionally, standardisation has focused on areas already well established in the market, aiming to address issues related to trade, interoperability, or safety. However, standards are increasingly being employed as tools to promote the market adoption of innovative technologies.

Standards can be found on the searching engines for the catalogues of the Standardisation Organisations, accessible through:

• the CEN standards search engine
• the CENELEC standards search engine
• the ISO standards search engine
• the IEC standards search engine

The use of standardisation as a track to valorise research and innovation results is emphasized in the ‘EU Policy on Knowledge Valorisation’ (Council Recommendation (EU) 2022/2415) and the ‘Code of Practice on Standardisation in the EU research area’ (Commission Recommendation (EU) 2023/498), making special emphasis on Horizon Europe projects but also to other, public- or private-funded innovation results.

[1]  Regulation (EU) 2024/1252 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 April 2024 establishing a framework for ensuring a secure and sustainable supply of critical raw materials and amending Regulations (EU) No 168/2013, (EU) 2018/858, (EU) 2018/1724 and (EU) 2019/1020 (Text with EEA relevance), see https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=OJ:L_202401252

[2] Directive 2014/24/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on public procurement and repealing Directive 2004/18/EC, see https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/es/TXT/?uri=CELEX:32014L0024

[3] COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE EUROPEAN COUNCIL, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS A New Industrial Strategy for Europe COM/2020/102 final https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A52020DC0102

[4] COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE EUROPEAN COUNCIL, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS The European Green Deal COM/2019/640 final https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=COM%3A2019%3A640%3AFIN

[5]  COM(2022) 31 final COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS An EU Strategy on Standardisation Setting global standards in support of a resilient, green and digital EU single market DocsRoom – European Commission (europa.eu)

Rare Earths and Magnets: Expanding  European capacities

Joint Conference with EIT RawMaterials

 29 – 30 October 2025, Stuttgart

Since its launch in 2021, PASSENGER has successfully advanced the development of rare-earth-free permanent magnets. By pioneering innovative technologies that substitute rare-earth elements (REEs), the project directly addresses Europe’s reliance on REE imports, supporting the creation of a stable, sustainable, and resilient European value chain.
These advancements are critical for strategic applications, including electric vehicles and water pump motors, where permanent magnets play a key role.
As the project reaches its final stages, the PASSENGER Final Conference will highlight major achievements, promote European leadership in sustainable magnetics, and explore pathways for market adoption and policy integration.

The event will be held within the SIGN conference, following the successful launch of the EIT RawMaterials Rare Earths & Magnets Strategic Impact Group Network (SIGN) in April. It will gather leading industrial and research stakeholders to advance a resilient and sustainable European Rare Earth and Magnet strategy. A dedicated session will focus on innovation, sustainability, and collaboration, covering various topics such as supply chain diversification and promoting circularity through cross-sector initiatives.

Thematic Focus

Alongside a guided visit to the Mercedes-Benz assembly plant, the programme will explore the intersection of innovation, sustainability, and industrial collaboration. Key topics include:

• Alternative magnet and motor technologies

• Pathways to diversified and de-risked magnet supply chains in the European Circular Economy

• Investment in EU Strategic Projects and international supply chain partnerships

• Attracting and nurturing talent for the sector

Register Now!

Engage with PASSENGER at the Raw Materials Week! Organised by the European Commission, this flagship policy event on raw materials gathers every year stakeholders from industry, academia, research organisations and policymakers. The 2024 edition will be held in Brussels on 9-13 December 2024.

PASSENGER will be participating in multiple events throughout the week, presenting its achievements in developing technology for rare earth-free permanent magnets and promoting a shift towards a more sustainable European value chain which is less reliant on critical raw materials.

Horizon Technology Success Stories

• 9 December at 14:00, hear from partner Semih Ener (Technische Universität Darmstadt) in the session on “Horizon Technology Success Stories”, co-organised by the Health and Digital Executive Agency (HaDEA). Find out the programme on the Raw Materials Week website.

PASSENGER stakeholders’ workshop

Session 1: Progressing in magnet solutions: REE-free innovations for a circular future

10 December, 10:00 – 14:00, join PASSENGER at the Hotel Marivaux for the session of its workshop organized as a satellite event on “Progressing in magnet solutions: REE-free innovations for a circular future”, followed by a buffet.

• • 10:15 The future of magnet production: Material alternatives (MnAlC, Improved ferrites). IMDEA
  • 10:45: Achieving UE independence with REE free-based magnets. IMDEA
  • 11:15: Coffee break and networking
  • 11:45: Driving electrical mobility with sustainable magnet solutions.
  • 12:15: The future of circular economy in a changing world. Carlo Burkhardt, Pforzheim University
  • 12:45: Walking lunch & matchmaking

Session 2: Driving the future forward: critical raw materials for a more sustainable Europe

10 December, 15:00 – 17:30: PASSENGER is holding a second session of its workshop on “Driving the future forward: critical raw materials for a more sustainable Europe”, featuring contributions from the project partners but also from projects working on related topics, within the Sustainable CRMs4EU

• • 15:00 Exploring collaborations through the Critical Raw Materials Act. Santiago Cuesta-López, ICAMCyL
  • 15:30 Advancing circular economy: The evolution of recycling in CRMs. Andrea Giacomelli, Erion Compliance Organization
  • 16:00 Revival of end-of-life photovoltaic silicon through the design of high-performance Si/C composite anodes for LIBs. Hamid Oubaha, University of Liège
  • 16:30 Leveraging Life Cycle Assessment for Sustainable Innovations in Critical Raw Materials. Vasiliki Alexiou, MNLT Innovations
  • 17:00 How R&I initiatives are working to make EU sustainable and self reliant in the supply of CRMs for the green and digital transition. Stefania Vitale, ESF
  • 17:15: Conclusions and closing remarks

The workshop will take place on Tuesday 10 December 2024 at Hotel Marivaux, with possibility to attend remotely.

See you at Raw Materials Week 2024!

New publication based on PASSENGER’s research, now available open access!

Titled “Structural and magnetic properties of rapidly solidified and Bi-bonded hot compacted Mn_53.3−_xAl₄₅C_1.7Ti_x magnets” and authored by Juan Sebastian Trujillo Hernandez, Fernando Maccari, Jesús Anselmo Tabares, Konstantin Skokov, Germán Antonio Pérez-Alcázar, Oliver Gutfleisch, Semih Ener, the paper has been published in the Journal of Magnetism and Magnetic Materials.

This study examines the impact of Ti doping on the phase formation and #magnetic properties of Mn–Al–C alloys. Using melt spinning, we synthesized Mn53.3−xAl45C1.7Tix alloys (x values ranging from 0 to 1.5) producing high purity ϵ-phase ribbons. The optimal annealing treatment for the formation of ferromagnetic τ-phase is 20 min at 550 °C for all compositions. However, Ti-doped samples showed the formation of β-phase due to partial phase decomposition, and TiC precipitates were present at high Ti concentrations. Upon doping, the Curie temperature was increased from 557K (Ti free sample) to 600K. To improve the coercivity, a combination of ball milling and hot compaction, introducing Bi as a metallic binder, have resulted in increased coercivity from 0.18 T to 0.33 T. Bi addition lead to formation of a grain boundary phase aiding densification. We demonstrate how modifying composition and processing can improve the magnetic properties of Mn–Al based magnets.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmmm.2024.172573

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0304885324008643

#Mn–Al–C–Ti alloys; #Magnetic properties; #Melt spinning; #Hot compaction; #Rare-earth-free #Permanent magnets

Citation: J.S. Trujillo Hernández, F. Maccari, J.A. Tabares, K.P. Skokov, G.A. Pérez Alcázar, O. Gutfleisch, S. Ener,
Structural and magnetic properties of rapidly solidified and Bi-bonded hot compacted Mn53.3−xAl45C1.7Tix magnets,
Journal of Magnetism and Magnetic Materials, Volume 610, 2024, 172573, ISSN 0304-8853, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmmm.2024.172573.

European Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen, recalled in her recent 2022 State of the European Union: “without secure and sustainable access to the necessary raw materials, our ambition to become the first climate neutral continent is at risk”.  Ursula von der Leyen explicitly mentioned: “Lithium and rare earths will soon be more important than oil and gas. Our demand for rare earths alone will increase fivefold by 2030. […] We must avoid becoming dependent again, as we did with oil and gas”.

Alarming dependency on the supply of rare earths

The fragility of the present situation becomes clear when considering the alarming dependency on the supply of these materials: as much as 98% of the rare earths used in Europe are imported from China. Rare earths are essential in the fabrication of the permanent magnets that are literally driving our green technologies. It takes about 1 kg of rare earths to produce the magnets of an electric car;  up to 2 tons for the magnets of a single wind turbine. Achieving a green future in Europe requires the search for sustainable alternatives.

Rare-earth-free permanent magnets “Made in Europe”

EU H2020 project PASSENGER responds to the EU’s dependency on critical raw materials by focusing on developing rare earth-free permanent magnets “Made in Europe”. PASSENGER covers the whole magnets production value chain, from studying fundamental properties to the production of high-technology end products, while aiming at making the transition from a linear to a circular model involving citizens, international platforms and relevant stakeholders. A consortium combining the joint effort of 20 centers, with the active involvement of 13 industrial partners, is working towards realising 8 pilot plants in Europe by 2025. These plants will address the fabrication of permanent magnet materials with constituents widely available and recyclable and their integration in electromobility and water pump applications. PASSENGER is working to guarantee wise diversification in the permanent magnet sector to contribute to achieving the European Green Deal objectives.

This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 101003914, which contributes €8.9 M from the €11.3 M total budget. PASSENGER addresses to the topic CE-SC5-10-2020 on raw materials innovation under subtopic d) Pilots on substitution of critical and scarce raw materials (2020).

PASSENGER held its second progress meeting in person on 29-30 June 2022 in Berlin, back-to-back to the EIT Expert Forum and the “Magnets Matter” workshop.
At the start of the second year into the project, a considerable part of partners’ activities focus on developing two types of precursor material that could substitute permanent magnets containing rare-earth elements (REE) with elements based on natural resources abundant in Europe: Mn-Al-C alloy and Ferrite. In this second progress meeting, partners provided feedback on their own progress and discussed how to improve their collaboration and the overall development of the precursor material.

Developing Mn-Al-C alloy

Starting with the Mn-Al-C alloy, LCM presented their process for the fabrication of cast pure 𝜏-phase Mn-Al-C alloy, as well the collaboration with the University of Birmingham to fabricate the alloy by strip-casting. The cast alloys prepared by LCM have been sent to TUDA, IMDEA and MBN for characterization and further processing. MBN then presented new results regarding the High Energy Ball Milling (HEBM) performed on the powders prepared by LCM. The preliminary trials on the extrusion of the 𝜏-phase Mn-Al-C powders require further tests. IMDEA showed the results obtained after performing flash-milling experiments on the milled powders prepared by LCM, detailing the analysis of the morphology, the content of the different crystallographic phases and the magnetic properties of the processed powders, before and after the thermal treatment. TUDA detailed the scientific and technological challenges related to the development of suitable properties of the Mn-Al-C alloy, specifically considering the formation of secondary phases, the need of avoiding (or reducing) the twins, and dislocations. Finally, METALPINE presented the progress made in the production of metallic powders by gas-atomisation technique.

To summarise partners’ progress on the development of this precursor material, partners then discussed in a roundtable the possibilities to further improve the Mn-Al-C powders’ properties, as well as partners’ specific requirements.

Developing Ferrite

ILPEA presented the results on the milling and sintering of two types of ferrites, exploring of magnet properties of final sintered magnets. MBN presented the results from their trials to replicate IMDEA’s flash milling in larger quantities for the ferrites provided by ILPEA. IMDEA the presented the characterization of powder produced by MBN ball milling technique and IMDEA’s flash milling.Finally, JSI presented its first results of TEM measurements.

Integrating precursor material into magnets

Looking ahead, producers and integrators discussed their needs and the best way forward.

The annual meeting also covered progress on work packages covering sustainability, techno-economic, health and safety assessment of raw materials, including testing recyclability, activities focusing on disseminating the projects’ results, their industrial exploitation, pilot replication and commercialization.

Many thanks to partner EIT for hosting this meeting!

magnets matter!

Permanent Magnets to Enable a Green Transition in Europe

Joint Workshop at EIT RawMaterials Expert Forum

28. June 2022, 11:30 -17:30, Berlin, MövenPick Hotel

Addressing the topic “Magnets Matter! Permanent Magnets to Enable a Green Transition in Europe”, this unique workshop will cover advances in technology, innovation, integration, and circular economy of permanent magnets in Europe. Whether rare-earth-based or rare-earth-free, permanent magnets are crucial components to achieve the Green Transition in the EU, responding to the substantial increase in demand. The workshop will address the following issues, inviting key players from the academic and industrial fields:  

• Advances in technological permanent magnets (PMs): rare earth-based and rare earth-free PMs. 
• Perspectives to improve rare-earth-based PM materials and innovation in rare-earth-free PMs. 
• EU initiatives addressing criticality in PMs. 
• An industrial perspective – Integration in products: present and future of the PM sector in Europe.  
• Circular economy of magnets: recycling, design of materials and products.

Programme

11:30 Opening remarks

Alberto Bollero –  PASSENGER Coordinator, IMDEA Nanociencia

11:40 Keynote: Magnets Matter

• Konstantin Skokov  – TU Darmstadt
  Rare-earth based and rare-earth free permanent magnets for efficient energy and transport applications. 

• Sorana Luca –LITEN CEA-Tech
  Pilot plants for permanent magnets production and motors design. 

• Alena Vishina – Uppsala University
  High-throughput and data-mining search for rare-earth free permanent magnets.

• Iakovos Yakoumis – MONOLITHOS Catalysts & Recycling Ltd.
  Closing the loop: Scaling-up a recycling process for EoL permanent magnets.

Panel discussion, moderated by Alberto Bollero, IMDEA Nanociencia 

13:00 Lunch break

14:00 Poster session

Key findings from 8 projects addressing sustainability in the permanent magnet sector.

15:00 Critical raw material strategies in permanent magnets

From sourcing materials to reducing RE content, substituting RE, recycling, and addressing the needs of a circular economy, five EU-funded projects (H2020 and EIT) provide insights on how they address critical raw material strategies in permanent magnets.

• SecREEts: Sourcing materials – Securing European Critical Rare Earth Elements
  Ian Higgins, Less Common Metals

• LowReeMotors: REs-content reduction –  Rare-earth reduction in high performance permanent magnet electric machines.
  Gaizka Ugalde, Mondragon University
  

• PASSENGER: REs substitution –  Towards a successful diversification in the permanent magnet sector through substitution.
  Alberto Bollero, IMDEA Nanonciencia
  

• 3DREMAG: Reduction and efficiency by design –  3D printing of rare-earth PMs.
  Joni Reijonen, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland

• SUSMAGPRO: Recycling and Design for recycling – Sustainable Recovery, Reprocessing and Reuse of Rare-Earth Magnets in a Circular Economy.
  Carlo Burkhardt, Pforzheim University
  

16:15 – 16:45 coffee break

16:45 – 18:00 Panel Discussion

Sustainable manufacture and integration of permanent magnets

Where does the future lie for permanent magnets in Europe? To meet the challenges associated with the reduction of environmental impacts and the increasing demand for permanent magnets – particularly in the electromobile sector, diversification of their production is crucial.

This panel discussion provides unique insights on industry’s current needs and the latest technological advances. Manufacturers and integrators of permanent magnets, together with project representatives from the previous session, will discuss perspectives related to raw materials sourcing, reduction, substitution, and recycling, whether rare-earth-based or rare-earth-free.

Moderated by Carolyn Brand, Prospex Institute

• Ian Higgins, Less Common Metals  
• Paolo Bernardi, Industrie ILPEA SPA 
• Boris Saje, KOLEKTOR  
• Ricardo Altimira, IMA 
• Martin Krengel, WILO  
• Ian Higgins, H2020 SecREEts 
• Gaizka Ugalde, EIT LowReeMotors 
• Alberto Bollero, EU H2020 PASSENGER
• Joni Reijonen, EIT 3DREMAG  
• Carlo Burkhardt, EU H2020 SUSMAGPRO  

This Workshop is hosted within the sixth edition of the EIT RawMaterials Expert Forum, 27-29 June 2022 in Berlin, Europe’s leading raw materials innovation and education exchange, connecting experts and innovators from various parts of different raw materials value chains.

The PASSENGER project will be present at the 4th EIT RawMaterials Summit, the industry’s flagship conference, organised by EIT RawMaterials, the world’s leading partnership on raw materials. Gathering leaders of industry, government, NGOs, R&D, and education involved in the raw material sector, the summit provides invaluable connections to stakeholders transitioning to the greening of all aspects of supply chains.

Alberto Bollero, project coordinator, will present the objectives and latest developments of the PASSENGER project, within a session on “Critical but not rare: Building a European rare earths and permanent magnets value chain” on Tuesday, 24. May 2022 09:30 to 11:00 (CET).

Registrations now!

EU Vice-President Maros Šefčovic, EU Commissioner Mariya Gabriel and EU Commissioner Thierry Breton are opening the event, highlighting the strategic importance of raw materials for Europe and the EIT Summit as THE forum for experts like you to drive the discussion.  The Summit, now one of the largest raw materials conferences in Europe, attracts over 100 speakers, reaching over 1000 attendees from over 400 companies, who are all making great strides towards the building of a thriving green economy.

EIT RawMaterials is a key actor to advance Europe’s transition to a sustainable economy. In the last 5 years, we have supported more than 300 innovation and education projects reaching over 200,000 learners and over 170 innovations brought to market.  A total of 160 million euros has been raised by our start-ups.   The European Raw Materials Alliance now has 600 partners who benefit from the unique investment opportunities we facilitate, currently with an investment pipeline of more than 30 pre-screened projects worth above 11 billion euros.