The Defense Logistics Agency has awarded a contract to REalloys Inc. through its subsidiary Terves LLC to scale next-generation metallothermal processes for samarium and gadolinium metals. This contract represents a significant development in addressing what the Department of War has identified as a strategic vulnerability in rare earth supply security, as the United States currently depends 100% on foreign sources for these critical defense metals.
Samarium and gadolinium metals serve as essential inputs for numerous defense and dual-use technologies, including high-temperature samarium-cobalt permanent magnets, precision guidance systems, aerospace and radar applications, and advanced optics. These materials are particularly crucial for systems that must operate in extreme thermal and radiation environments, with samarium-cobalt magnets being the only magnetic material capable of withstanding the extreme heat of fighter jet engines and supersonic friction of precision-guided munitions.
The DLA contract will advance REalloys' gadolinium metallization capability while adding direct samarium metal production from mixed rare earth feedstocks, addressing what the company describes as a long-standing bottleneck in U.S. samarium supply. Through its DLA Strategic Materials division, the DLA manages the National Defense Stockpile and is charged with securing domestic sources of rare earths to decrease reliance on foreign supply chains.
REalloys' approach differs from conventional rare earth processing that typically relies on large, capital-intensive solvent extraction plants. Instead, the company is developing a modular, semi-continuous processing architecture that enables direct reduction of Samarium-Europium-Gadolinium feedstocks into high-purity metals. The company has filed a provisional patent covering its direct reduction of SEG feedstocks and zero-waste metallization process, which it claims could reduce production costs by up to 50% compared to traditional methods.
A central deliverable of the DLA contract is the engineering design for a 300 ton per year production facility built around modular reactors that can be rapidly deployed, replicated, and scaled to meet both steady-state and surge demand from the Department of War and commercial markets. This modular approach aims to significantly reduce capital requirements and shorten deployment timelines while enabling distributed domestic production aligned with U.S. defense and industrial policy priorities.
The company believes this contract validates and scales REalloys' ability to produce these metals domestically, effectively closing what it describes as a strategic gap in the supply chain for materials that have no substitute in extreme environments. By establishing a sovereign source for these high-heat and neutron-absorbing metals, the initiative aims to secure foundational components required for the next generation of American aerospace, defense, and energy independence.
For more information about the company's broader initiatives, visit https://www.realloys.com. Additional regulatory filings and disclosures are available through the Securities and Exchange Commission at https://www.sec.gov.
