Midwest Energy Builds India’s First Sintered Rare-Earth Magnet Plant to Cut Import Dependence

Hyderabad-based Midwest Energy is setting up what is reported to be India’s first domestic manufacturing facility for sintered neodymium-iron-boron permanent magnets, marking an important step in reducing the country’s dependence on imported rare-earth magnet systems.

The project involves an initial investment of around ₹250 crore and is currently undergoing trial production. Commercial production is expected to begin by mid-October 2026 with an initial annual capacity of 500 tonnes, while the company plans to expand output to 5,000 tonnes by December 2027.

India Moves Into Sintered NdFeB Magnet Manufacturing

Sintered neodymium-iron-boron, or NdFeB, magnets are among the strongest commercially available permanent magnets and are widely used where high magnetic performance is required in compact systems.

They are critical components in electric vehicle motors, wind turbines, industrial motors, consumer electronics, defence systems and medical equipment such as MRI machines. The Ministry of Heavy Industries has identified sintered NdFeB magnets as a strategic material class because they are essential to several advanced manufacturing and clean-energy sectors.

India currently has capabilities in rare-earth mining, separation and oxide refining, but lacks industrial-scale midstream capacity for converting rare-earth oxides into metals, alloys and finished sintered magnets. As a result, the country currently imports all of its sintered NdFeB permanent magnet demand for downstream applications.

Initial Capacity Set at 500 Tonnes a Year

Midwest Energy’s Hyderabad facility is expected to begin commercial operations with an annual production capacity of 500 tonnes.

The company is using manufacturing technology developed in-house, according to current reports, and sample testing is already underway with companies operating in the electric vehicle and wind-energy sectors.

An earlier Technology Development Board project document also identified Midwest Advanced Materials as setting up a fully integrated production line for neodymium materials and rare-earth permanent magnets, with an initial target of 500 tonnes annually. The project cost was listed at ₹250.86 crore, with ₹125 crore in assistance from the Technology Development Board.

Expansion to 5,000 Tonnes Planned by December 2027

Midwest Energy plans to scale the facility from 500 tonnes to 5,000 tonnes annually by December 2027, with total investment potentially rising to around ₹2,000 crore as capacity expands.

The larger scale is expected to improve manufacturing economics and narrow the price gap with imported magnets. At the initial 500-tonne level, domestic magnets are expected to cost more than Chinese imports, but higher volumes could make local production more competitive.

The expansion would also significantly increase India’s ability to produce high-performance permanent magnets domestically for industries that are expected to see rapid demand growth over the next decade.

Rare-Earth Magnets Are Critical for EVs and Wind Energy

India’s demand for rare-earth permanent magnets is expected to rise sharply as electric mobility, renewable energy and advanced manufacturing expand.

An official government assessment estimated that India could require around 8,220 tonnes of rare-earth permanent magnets annually by 2030. Electric vehicles alone are projected to account for approximately 3,250 tonnes, while wind turbines could require another 1,800 tonnes.

Other major demand centres include industrial motors, BLDC fans, smartphones, computers, solar-powered pumps, elevators and consumer electronics.

This growing requirement makes domestic magnet production strategically important not only for clean-energy industries but also for reducing vulnerabilities in critical technology supply chains.

Government Has Launched ₹7,280 Crore Magnet Manufacturing Scheme

The project is taking shape alongside a broader government push to establish an indigenous rare-earth permanent magnet industry.

The Union Cabinet approved a ₹7,280 crore scheme in November 2025 to promote domestic manufacturing of sintered rare-earth permanent magnets. The scheme was formally notified in December 2025 and provides sales-linked incentives and capital subsidies for integrated manufacturing facilities.

The policy is designed to bridge India’s midstream technology gap and support end-to-end production from rare-earth oxides to finished magnets.

Strategic Importance Extends to Defence and Aerospace

Rare-earth permanent magnets are also important for defence and aerospace systems because they are used in high-performance electric motors, actuators, sensors, control systems and other compact electromechanical components.

The Ministry of Heavy Industries has specifically identified defence and aerospace among the downstream sectors dependent on sintered NdFeB magnets. Building domestic manufacturing capability therefore has implications beyond commercial industry and directly supports India’s strategic technology base.

A reliable domestic supply of such magnets can strengthen resilience across multiple sectors that depend on advanced electronic and electromechanical systems.

Midwest Energy Adds Battery Storage Manufacturing to Its Portfolio

Alongside the rare-earth magnet project, Midwest Energy has also expanded into battery-energy storage manufacturing.

The company operates a 1.2 GW battery energy storage system plant in Bengaluru that began commercial production in July 2026, adding another advanced clean-energy manufacturing capability to its portfolio.

The combination of rare-earth magnets and battery storage places the company across two important parts of India’s emerging clean-energy and electric-mobility supply chain.

India Builds Domestic Capacity in a Strategic Technology

Midwest Energy’s Hyderabad plant addresses one of the most important gaps in India’s advanced manufacturing ecosystem by moving the country into industrial-scale production of sintered NdFeB permanent magnets.

With commercial production approaching, a planned tenfold capacity expansion and government support for a wider domestic magnet industry, India is beginning to establish local capability in a component that is essential to electric mobility, renewable energy, defence, electronics and medical technology.

The project strengthens the Make in India ecosystem by bringing a strategically important material closer to domestic supply chains and reducing long-term dependence on imported high-performance magnets.

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References

Ministry of Heavy Industries, Government of India — Scheme to Promote Manufacturing of Sintered Rare Earth Permanent Magnets, 2026.

Press Information Bureau, Ministry of Heavy Industries — Assessment of Rare Earth Permanent Magnet demand in India, July 21, 2026.

Technology Development Board, Government of India — Midwest Advanced Materials project for commercial indigenous production of neodymium materials and rare-earth permanent magnets.

The Economic Times — “Midwest Energy to set up ₹250-crore rare earth magnet plant in Hyderabad,” September 28, 2026.

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