From left: Mike Kopp, senior advisor to the US Secretary of Energy, Mark Jensen, CEO of ReElement Technologies, Lee Kye-in, CEO of Posco International, and Park Chan-ki, minister counselor for trade, industry and energy at the South Korean Embassy in the US, pose for a photo during a signing ceremony for a rare earth joint venture project in Washington on Thursday. (Posco International) Posco International said Friday it would build a rare earth separation and refining facility in the US through a joint venture with US-based ReElement Technologies.The trading and energy arm of Posco Group said it signed an agreement with US rare earth refining company ReElement Technologies in Washington on Thursday to establish a joint venture for the new facility.The signing ceremony was attended by Posco International CEO Lee Kye-in, Mark Jensen, CEO of ReElement and senior officials from the US State Department, Commerce Department and Energy Department, as well as representatives from the South Korean Embassy in Washington.Under the agreement, the two companies will jointly invest $200 million to build a rare earth separation and refining plant in the US with an annual production capacity of 6,000 tons. They also plan to establish an integrated production complex for manufacturing permanent magnets.Posco International will take the lead in managing the JV as the largest shareholder, while ReElement will provide core rare earth separation and refining technologies.The joint venture will produce neodymium-praseodymium oxide, a key material used in permanent magnets, as well as heavy rare earth oxides, including dysprosium and terbium.Operations will begin with an annual capacity of 3,000 tons, scaling up to 6,000 tons in a subsequent phase. Pilot production is targeted for the fourth quarter of 2027, with full-scale commercial production scheduled for 2028.The $200 million total investment will be split evenly: The first $100 million will cover facility construction, equipment setup, and initial operating expenses, while the second $100 million is earmarked for expansion efforts contingent on market conditions, the company said.The agreement marks the official launch of the "Boiler Maker Project," a rare earth and permanent magnet production initative first announced in a memorandum of understanding signed by the two companies in September last year.“This joint venture goes beyond building a refining plant and represents the starting point for establishing a US-based critical minerals value chain from raw materials to final products,” said Lee. “The combination of both companies’ global supply chains and innovative refining technologies is expected to create significant synergy.”“Both companies will together establish a stable supply chain that supports national security, clean energy and next-generation advanced technologies,” Jensen was quoted as saying.