Washington, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Ted Budd (R-N.C.) joined state and local leaders in delivering remarks after Vulcan Elements announced that they will be building a new $1 billion ‘Polaris facility’ in Benson, North Carolina. Senator Budd has championed the U.S. Government’s partnership with Vulcan Elements in their efforts to reshore the rare earth magnet manufacturing industry. The Polaris facility will create 1,000 new manufacturing jobs in North Carolina and bolster America’s national security by breaking our reliance on China for these vital components.
As Senator Budd said in his remarks:
“This is a great day to celebrate a more than a billion-dollar investment and one thousand new jobs. It’s a boost to the local economy, but I want you all to know how important this is for our national security.
“Vulcan, uniquely, and this is what got my attention in Washington, is that Vulcan is fully decoupled from China. We had some earlier conversations, and it was interesting that China tipped their hand to what they intended to do to constrain the American supply chain, or supplies to the United States. So, this is well timed. This is well-timed for the security of our nation. You know, after meeting the Vulcan team in Washington, I immediately realized the need to prioritize Vulcan’s efforts.
“I want to give you a few specifics, including the lead to push the Industrial Base Analysis and Sustainment, or the IBAS program funding, also working to reduce barriers to magnet production, and then talking to all of the presidential nominees who come through our Senate offices that are related to Armed Services and the Department of War supply chain. So, if they didn’t know about Vulcan, and most of them did know about Vulcan, when I asked them—if they didn’t when they came in, they sure did when they left.
“Almost every weapon in our supply chain uses magnets, including jets, submarines, and the missiles that they fire, but they’re also in things that we mentioned earlier, data centers, drones, robotics, and chips; all of which depend on rare earth magnets.
“The U.S. should have done this decades ago, but now we are, and we’re moving the critical supply chain for rare earths and so many other things away from China. Vulcan, you’re in the lead for that. So, thank you.
“But also, North Carolina is key in this. This is a great state for so many reasons, whether it’s semiconductors or batteries, and now rare earths. So, congratulations. We appreciate all that you do. We’re glad that you’re here, and we look forward to the future together.”
BACKGROUND
Senator Budd has led the charge in the U.S. Senate to support Vulcan’s efforts to reshore the rare earth magnet industry:
- Led a North Carolina delegation letter to the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, Michael Duffy, highlighting the impressive work of Vulcan Elements and supporting the company’s application for funding through the Industrial Base Analysis and Sustainment (IBAS) Program.
- Pushed for a provision in the FY26 NDAA directing the Secretary of Defense to provide a briefing to the Senate Armed Services Committee, no later than March 2026, on an analysis of domestic Neodymium Iron Boron (NdFeB) manufacturing in the United States or allied nations and identify barriers to domestic rare earth magnet production.
- Championed a $4 million increase in IBAS funding in the Senate’s Defense Appropriations bill.
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