White House-backed USA Rare Earth makes $3 billion acquisition into South America to combat Chinese dominance

USA Rare Earth, a Trump administration-backed miner and manufacturer, is expanding into a larger global player through a nearly $3 billion acquisition of the Serra Verde Group, owner of Brazil’s Pela Ema rare earths mine and processing plant. The April 20 deal—for more than $2.5 billion in stock and $300 million in cash—helps turn USA Rare Earth (USAR) from an American mining and magnet manufacturing startup with little revenue to count thus far, into a key rare earths player with even bigger ambitions. The White House has repeatedly invested in critical minerals companies —including rare earths—since the April 2025 tariff wars began after China pushed back on Trump’s tariff plans by exerting its dominance over global rare earths mining, refining, and magnets manufacturing. “USA Rare Earth is now the global champion in rare earths,” said USAR CEO Barbara Humpton in an April 20 call with analysts. “The world needs what we are building, and we’re moving with purpose and urgency to deliver it.” “We’re going to be a major supplier to all the other players in the industry…helping the whole industry scale,” she added. The deal comes with the Pela Ema mine having already secured minimum floor pricing—to prevent exposure to Chinese price dumping—and a $565 million financing package from the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation to help fund expansion initiatives. The mine has a 15-year, 100% offtake agreement to various U.S. Government agencies and private capital sources for the magnetic rare earths that are required to make the high-performance, neodymium-iron-boron (NdFeB) magnets that are critical in most modern electronics from electric vehicles to the aerospace and defense sectors. The magnets are used in virtually anything that moves. The “core four” rare earths for the magnets, motors, turbines, and more are neodymium and praseodymium, as well as the heavier and rarer dysprosium and terbium, which make the magnets more heat resistant. The Pela Ema mine…