TEXMiN-GIREDMET Rare Earth Agreement Strengthens India’s Critical Mineral Strategy
The signing of the Memorandum of Understanding between TEXMiN at IIT (ISM) Dhanbad and Russia’s GIREDMET is more than a routine academic collaboration. It is a strategic technology partnership focused on rare earth and critical mineral processing, an area that will determine industrial power in the green and digital age. At a time when electric vehicles, renewable energy systems, defence platforms and advanced electronics depend on secure access to rare earths and battery metals, India’s push to build domestic capability has acquired new urgency.
Rare Earth Processing Is the Real Strategic Gap
India’s vulnerability does not lie in geology. The country possesses significant mineral sand resources and rare earth potential. The real gap lies in processing, separation and refining. Globally, rare earth refining capacity is heavily concentrated, creating supply chain risks for countries that rely on imports of processed materials rather than raw ore.
For decades, India remained largely a supplier of mineral sands while importing high-value products such as permanent magnets and high-purity metals. The strategic lesson is clear. Control over separation and metallurgical technology determines leverage. Without domestic refining capability, reserves alone do not translate into industrial power.
How the MoU Fits Into the National Critical Mineral Mission
India’s National Critical Mineral Mission aims to secure exploration, processing and supply chains for minerals essential to clean energy, electronics and defence. The TEXMiN–GIREDMET partnership complements overseas mineral acquisition efforts, domestic exploration reforms and production-linked incentive schemes for EV and electronics manufacturing.
Technology collaboration is the missing link between extraction and value addition. By working on processing technologies, advanced alloys and pilot-scale validation, the partnership addresses the weakest segment of India’s mineral ecosystem. This is not about mining more; it is about refining smarter.
Permanent Magnets and Strategic Industries
One of the most important elements of this collaboration is the focus on high-coercivity neodymium-iron-boron permanent magnets. These magnets are critical components in EV motors, wind turbines, drones, robotics and missile guidance systems. India imports a large share of its magnet requirements, creating both economic and strategic vulnerability.
If India aims to lead in EV manufacturing and renewable energy deployment, it cannot remain dependent on imported magnets. Domestic magnet production is not a niche industrial goal. It is a strategic necessity.
Battery Recycling and Urban Mining as Strategic Leverage
The MoU’s emphasis on hydrometallurgical recycling of lithium, nickel and cobalt is equally significant. As EV adoption accelerates, India will generate increasing volumes of spent lithium-ion batteries. Recovering valuable metals from these batteries reduces import dependence and strengthens resource security.
Urban mining and recycling offer India a parallel route to mineral security. Instead of relying solely on overseas acquisitions, the country can build a circular ecosystem that extracts value from domestic waste streams. This approach aligns with sustainability goals while enhancing strategic resilience.
Industrial Sovereignty and Geopolitical Diversification
The partnership with GIREDMET also reflects India’s broader diversification strategy. As global supply chains become instruments of geopolitical leverage, countries are rethinking material dependencies. By expanding cooperation across multiple regions, India reduces its exposure to concentrated supply sources.
Industrial sovereignty today is defined not only by manufacturing output but by control over critical inputs. Rare earth processing, advanced metallurgy and battery metal recovery are central to that sovereignty.
Technology Transfer and the Execution Challenge
The critical question now is execution. Many MoUs remain symbolic unless backed by capital investment, regulatory clarity and commercial scaling. Rare earth separation plants are capital-intensive and environmentally sensitive. Pilot projects must translate into industrial production.
The government must ensure that technology transfer is real and measurable. Public-private partnerships, clear production targets and time-bound commercialization roadmaps are essential. Without industrial capacity, strategic intent remains incomplete.
What the Government Must Do Next
India must accelerate the establishment of rare earth separation facilities and incentivize domestic magnet manufacturing. Battery recycling infrastructure requires targeted policy support. Mineral strategy should be integrated with EV, renewable energy and defence manufacturing targets.
Equally important is the development of metallurgical skills and research capabilities. Industrial policy must move in tandem with technology capability building.
Conclusion
Control over critical minerals will shape economic power in the coming decades. India cannot aspire to EV leadership, renewable expansion or defence self-reliance while depending on external refining capacity. The TEXMiN–GIREDMET agreement signals intent. Its success, however, will be measured not in agreements signed, but in magnets manufactured, metals refined and strategic vulnerabilities reduced within India.
