U.S. eyes old tech as ammo in rare earth fight with China

The U.S. government is now pouring real money into recycled electronics to cut its reliance on China, after the Pentagon grabbed a big equity stake in MP Materials, the only company currently digging rare earths out of U.S. soil.

That came just as President Trump tightened his grip on global copper supplies with a 50% import tariff, pushing prices to an all-time high. But while mining takes decades to scale, the U.S. is trying to use something it already has: the mountains of dead phones, broken EV batteries, trashed servers, and ancient laptops piling up in warehouses and landfills.

The idea is simple: recycle metals like neodymium, praseodymium, and terbium out of e-waste instead of waiting 30 years for new mines. And the race is already on.

According to CNBC, companies like Glencore, Full Circle Electronics, Cyclic Materials, and startups like Illumynt are all fighting for that trash, now seen as raw material in a larger geopolitical fight against China. These metals aren’t optional, they’re needed for fighter jets, power tools, MRI machines, wind turbines, and basically any high-end tech used by the military or industry.

Recyclers chase rare earths as global supply chain buckles

Kunal Sinha, global head of recycling at Glencore, said recycling wasn’t taken seriously until recently. “A lot of people are still sleeping at the wheel and don’t realize how big this can be,” he said. Glencore has been processing old electronics at its smelter in Quebec for decades, turning waste into copper slabs and extracting gold, silver, palladium, platinum, and more.

Fifteen percent of the smelter’s feedstock now comes from recycled electronics. Glencore also signed a multi-year deal with Cyclic to supply them with recycled copper pulled from EV motors, data center parts, and wind turbines. Cyclic is spending over $20 million building a new U.S. plant in Mesa, Arizona.

Demand is so hot that foreign firms are jumping into the U.S. market. Germany’s Wieland started a $100 million recycling facility in Kentucky in 2022. Aurubis followed with an $800 million multi-metal plant in Georgia. CEO Toralf Haag said Aurubis Richmond “will allow us to keep strategically important metals in the economy,” aiming to cut down dependence on China.

The recycling isn’t just about rare earths. John Mitchell, president of the Global Electronics Association, pointed out that most electronics imported into the U.S. are loaded with metals like copper, gold, and steel. “There’s a great opportunity to actually have the tariffs be an impetus for greater recycling in this country,” he said.

Recycling is also fast. While new mines take decades, waste flows daily. Full Circle Electronics CEO Dave Daily said they’ve seen a spike in dumped electronics because businesses are rushing upgrades ahead of rising prices. “We’re definitely seeing a bit of an influx of [e-waste] coming into our warehouses,” he said. Full Circle tears old gear into 40 to 50 material types, selling them off to recyclers hunting metals for resale.

Battery and hard drive waste becomes new battleground

Lithium-ion batteries have also become a hot feedstock, packed with lithium, cobalt, nickel, manganese, and aluminum. Recyclers like Ascend Elements, Redwood Materials, Cirba Solutions, and American Battery Technology are trying to tap those materials to feed EV battery production.

But their futures are uncertain. They rely on the 45X tax credit created under Biden, a program that could get slashed in Trump’s new spending plan. Sinha warned: “Be careful not to build a recycling company on the back of one tax credit, because it can be short-lived.”

Data-heavy gear is also being stripped. Illumynt is harvesting rare earths from dead hard drives removed from data centers. In April, Western Digital teamed up with Microsoft, Critical Materials Recycling, and PedalPoint Recycling to pull out copper, gold, aluminum, steel, and rare earths from old drives.

Meanwhile, the ITAD industry is booming, with waste disposal firms like Waste Management, Clean Harbors, and specialists like Sims Lifecycle Services and Electronic Recyclers International are wiping data and breaking down devices.

There’s plenty to work with. In 2022, nearly 62 million metric tons of e-waste were produced worldwide — up 82% since 2010. The U.S. made almost 8 million of that, but only 15–20% was recycled. And the numbers are rising. IBISWorld said the U.S. e-waste recycling market generated $28.1 billion last year, growing 8% a year.

The China problem is still hanging over everything. In April 2025, China restricted exports of rare earth magnets in retaliation for new Trump tariffs. Ford had to shut down some factories due to magnet shortages. Then in June, China granted a few six-month export licenses to ease the squeeze — but shipments are still far from normal. China still controls 90% of the market, from mining to refining to processing.

Trump’s White House is pushing new efforts. Before last week’s Pentagon move, Biden gave MP Materials $45 million. In April, the Interior Department greenlit development on the Colosseum rare earth project, deep inside California’s Mojave National Preserve. The site, owned by Australia’s Dateline Resources, could become the second U.S. rare earth mine.

Still, Sinha says recyclers should keep expectations in check. He warned against betting too much on hype or just new tech. “Don’t invest on the hype,” he said, “but on the fundamentals.” Glencore is dealing with that now.

They put $327.5 million into Li-Cycle, a battery recycler based in Toronto. The company filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy in May after starting construction on a plant in Rochester, New York. Now, Glencore is trying to scoop up the failed project with a $40 million bid.

Even so, Sinha said the market’s heating up. “The current environment will lead to more startups and investments,” he said. “We are investing ourselves.”