USA Rare Earth to buy UK-based rare earth metal producer

USA Rare Earth Inc. (USAR; Stillwater, Oklahoma) has agreed to acquire metal and alloys manufacturer Less Common Metals Ltd. (LCM; Ellesmere Port, UK), the world's largest producer of rare earth metals and alloys outside mainland China, as per Chemweek.

In a statement Sept. 29, the Nasdaq-listed USAR said it had agreed to acquire LCM for $100 million in cash and 6.74 million shares of USAR common stock under the terms of a definitive agreement signed by the two parties.

The acquisition will enable USAR to process recycled rare earth materials, creating a closed-loop system that can reuse end-of-life magnets and manufacturing waste. This new capability will help address growing sustainability concerns in rare earth processing while providing access to alternative lower-cost feedstock sources.

The deal also positions USAR as the only company outside mainland China capable of offering end-to-end rare earth processing, addressing a critical supply-chain bottleneck that has limited Western magnet manufacturing capabilities.

LCM operates a 67,000 square foot production facility at Ellesmere Port and is the sole proven producer outside mainland China capable of manufacturing light and heavy rare earth permanent magnet metals and alloys at commercial scale.

The company produces critical materials, including samarium, samarium cobalt, neodymium, praseodymium, dysprosium, terbium, yttrium and gadolinium, serving defense, automotive, electric vehicle and industrial sectors across the US, UK, France, Germany, Japan and Taiwan.

According to USAR, LCM’s extensive operational expertise and established supply relationships with raw material providers outside mainland China will strengthen the company’s access to feedstock for its planned 5,000 metric tons per year magnet production facility at Stillwater.

The deal also provides USAR with access to LCM’s government relationships and defense contracts, including recent awards from the Defense Logistics Agency to expand samarium metal production capacity. LCM recently announced plans to expand into France, with anticipated support from the French government’s 2030 investment plan, and maintains relationships with government agencies in the US, UK, France, Australia and Japan.

USAR Chairman Michael Blitzer described the acquisition of LCM as “a bold and transformative leap forward” for the company.

“The combination of USAR-LCM will establish rare earth metal making in the United States for the first time in decades, as we move quickly to integrate these capabilities in Stillwater, Oklahoma, to provide all of the feedstock for the buildout of our 5,000-ton magnet production facility,” he said. “Our ambition is also to expand LCM’s capabilities in both the United Kingdom and Europe, supporting the broader ex-China industry with a wide range of defense and industrial applications.”

The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter, subject to customary closing conditions, including UK regulatory approval.

mrchub.com

Occidental Petroleum Corp. (Oxy; Houston) is negotiating the sale of its chemical business, OxyChem, to Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (Omaha, Nebraska), according to Chemweek.

The deal, valued at about $10 billion, “could come together within days,” the newspaper said, citing “people familiar with the matter.”

The news that Oxy is negotiating the sale of OxyChem was first reported by the Financial Times Sept. 28, but the potential buyer was not identified.

Berkshire Hathway, the conglomerate led by investor Warren Buffett, is the largest shareholder in Oxy, with 26.91%, according to data from S&P Capital IQ. The second-largest investor is Vanguard Group, with 8.99%.

According to The Wall Street Journal, Buffett first took a stake in Oxy in 2019 to firm up the company’s bid for Anadarko Petroleum.

Berkshire Hathaway has a market capitalization of $1.1 trillion, according to S&P Capital IQ. It holds cash and short-term investments totaling $344 billion, versus debt of $127 billion.

Berkshire Hathaway’s last major chemical acquisition was The Lubrizol Corp., which the company bought in 2011 for $9.7 billion. Lubrizol remains a wholly owned subsidiary.

mrchub.com

Braskem announced Sept. 26 that it has hired financial and legal advisors to assist in the “development of a diagnosis of economic and financial alternatives” for the company amid a global downturn in the petrochemical industry, as per Chemweek.

The company “remains focused on implementing transformation initiatives to mitigate the significant impacts resulting from the prolonged downturn across the entire industry and to strengthen the competitiveness of the Brazilian chemical industry,” it said in in a statement.

Talks regarding the sale of a controlling stake in Braskem were underway even prior to the announcement. Braskem’s main shareholder, Novonor, has been in negotiations with Petroquimica Verde Fundo de Investimentos to sell its controlling stake in the company. A 90-day exclusivity period for the negotiations expired in late August, opening the door to other bids.

Novonor, which is currently under judicial reorganization, holds a 38.3% stake in Braskem, including 50.1% of its voting shares. State-owned energy company Petrobras has a 36.1% stake, including 47.0% of voting shares.

Petroquimica Verde is an investment fund owned by Brazilian tycoon Nelson Tanure.

The announcement that Braskem is exploring financial alternatives prompted S&P Global Ratings to downgrade the company’s credit rating to CCC- from B+.

“Considering the ongoing challenging industry conditions, the company’s sustained high leverage, and a weakening liquidity position, we assess there is a heightened likelihood that Braskem may initiate negotiations for a debt restructuring in the short term,” said S&P Global Ratings analyst Luisa Vilhena in a research note.

The move was S&P Global Ratings’ third downgrade of Braskem’s credit rating in the past six weeks.

Brazil has recently undertaken a series of measures to protect its petrochemical industry from competition with imported materials. In one of the most recent actions, the government extended the validity of the higher import tax for certain chemical products.

Additionally, in 2025, an antidumping duty was implemented against polyethylene imported from the US and Canada. For polyvinyl chloride, the antidumping duty was raised for the US and temporarily maintained for China while an outcome is awaited.

However, import data from the country shows that these measures have not been sufficient to halt the purchase of foreign resins. In the case of PVC, imports have continued to rise after the increase in antidumping duties against the US, with buyers seeking other suppliers, such as Egypt and Colombia, that benefit from tax exemptions.

Platts, a part of S&P Global Commodity Insights, assessed spot PVC at $865 per metric ton CFR Brazil, including duties, Sept. 24, below the most competitive offer heard and corroborated at $880 per metric ton for Egypt-origin material.

mrchub.com

Kazakhstan's national oil and gas company KazMunayGas (KMG) and Italy's Eni have commissioned a 50 MW solar power plant in the western city of Zhanaozen, KMG's press service said, as per Interfax.

The solar plant will supply electricity for the needs of KMG subsidiaries JSC OzenMunaigas and KazGPZ LLP. "The launch of this facility marks the first stage of a 247 MW hybrid power plant project, which combines solar, wind and gas generation and is being built as part of KMG's Low-Carbon Development Program," KMG said.

The new plant is equipped with modern photovoltaic technology, with over 80,000 solar panels installed on an area of around 80 hectares. The panels generate energy from both sides.

It is planned that the station will produce 86 million kWh of energy per year. The hybrid configuration combines renewable energy sources with gas generation, which guarantees supply even in variable weather conditions.

In 2026, KMG and Eni plan to complete the construction of two more facilities - a wind power plant (77 MW) and a gas power plant (120 MW).

The companies began construction of the hybrid power plant in July 2024. The project involves combined electricity generation from renewable (solar and wind) energy sources developed by Eni subsidiary Plenitude, as well as a gas power plant.

Investment is provided by KMG and Eni on a parity basis; the total amount has not been disclosed.

KazMunayGas is Kazakhstan's national operator for the exploration, production, refining, and transportation of hydrocarbons and represents the state's interests in the oil and gas sector.

Eni has operated in Kazakhstan's oil and gas exploration and production sector since the early 1990s. It is a co-operator of the Karachaganak field and a member of the North Caspian consortium developing the Kashagan field. Since 2017, Eni and KMG have jointly held subsoil use rights for exploration and production at the offshore Isatay block.

In Kazakhstan, Eni also operates in the renewable energy sector through its subsidiary Eni Plenitude - Arm Wind LLP. The company has built two wind power plants, Badamsha-1 and Badamsha-2, in the Aktobe region, with a total installed capacity of 96 MW, as well as a 50 MW solar power plant in the town of Shaulder in the Turkestan region.

mrchub.com

The Gazprom group increased production of natural and associated gas 0.64% year-on-year to 209.48 billion cubic meters (bcm) in the first half of 2025, compared to 208.14 bcm a year previously, the company said in a report, as per Interfax.

This includes data on production by organizations in which Gazprom invests, categorized as joint operations. Overall gas production across Russia decreased 3% to 335.299 bcm.

Production of gas and its distribution among existing gas production centers is determined based on the need to ensure reliable gas supplies to Russian consumers as well as to fulfill export obligations, taking into account incoming requests for additional volumes, Gazprom said. The sequential development of gas production capacities in the east of Russia continues. This includes expanding the central gas compressor station capacities and the phased increase (connection) of the number of operational gas wells at the Chayandinskoye field, developing the Kovyktinskoye field, and the phased increase (connection) of the number of operational wells.

Production of oil and gas condensate increased 2.35% to 38.32 million tonnes. The growth "is due to the high marginality of the sale of this type of raw material," Gazprom said. Furthermore, during the reporting period, the dynamics of liquid hydrocarbon production by Gazprom Group, as well as by associated organizations and joint ventures, continued to be influenced by the need to comply with the quota set by the Energy Ministry as part of the OPEC+ agreement.

Gazprom sold 185 bcm of gas to domestic and foreign markets in 6M 2025, compared with 186.7 bcm a year previously.

Gas consumption in the reporting period was influenced by weather-related, economic and geopolitical factors. At the same time, Gazprom Group ensured reliable supplies to Russian consumers in the necessary volumes in H1 2025, the group said. In particular, on the domestic market, the group recorded record levels of supplies to consumers from Russia's Unified Gas Supply System (UGSS). In April, after the end of the 2024-2025 autumn-winter period in Russia, the daily offtake record from the UGSS for that month was updated twice, with volumes corresponding to winter consumption levels. Total supplies in April also reached a historical maximum for this month.

Gazprom's gas transportation network within Russia received 301.2 bcm of gas in 6M 2025, decreasing from 308.4 bcm in 6M 2024 due to a decrease in the supply of gas to consumers within Russia.

Including applications processed in previous years, 15 companies received gas transportation permits in H1 2025 for a collective volume of 63.4 bcm.

Some 19.7 bcm of gas was pumped into underground storage facilities in the period, compared with 19.8 bcm a year previously. Some 25.6 bcm was withdrawn from storage, versus 26.4 bcm last year. These changes were due to the operating schedule of the UGSS.

An operating reserve of 73.170 bcm is currently being prepared ahead of the 2025/2026 withdrawal season, with geological and technical measures being taken to ensure a potential daily output of 858.8 million cubic meters (mcm).

Gazprom Group processed 32.14 bcm of natural and associated gas at its processing capacities in H1 2025, compared to 28.2 bcm in the previous year. Some 28.8 million tonnes of oil and stable gas condensate underwent primary processing, versus 28.31 million tonnes the year before. Gazprom Processing LLC and other gas production subsidiaries purified and stabilized 11.16 million tonnes of unstable gas condensate and oil, versus 10.92 million tonnes a year previously.

Oil and stable gas condensate processing increased 1.73% year-on-year, primarily due to increased demand for motor and aviation fuels on the market.

The group boosted production of petroleum products 1.39% to 26.27 million tonnes, thanks to an increase in primary processing of oil and stable gas condensate.

After the Central Dispatch Department of the Fuel and Energy Complex suspended its statistics publications, Gazprom's reports are the only accurate source of information about the company's production.

mrchub.com