Following notifications to the Utah Department of Workforce Services, US Magnesium plans to retrench 186 employees as it aims to idle its operations.

US Magnesium is the only primary producer of domestic magnesium metal and has been actively producing magnesium metal since 1972. However, the company has struggled to maintain stable magnesium metal production owing to numerous issues over the last four years. These include falling lake levels for its brine source (Great Salt Lake), air pollution accusations, for which the company paid a fine of US$413,772 in 2023, and declining magnesium production. These factors all contributed to US Magnesium’s decision to idle its operations.   

Magnesium metal demand is set to grow from roughly 1,250kt in 2023 to more than 1,600kt by 2034, mainly driven by its use in the aluminium industry and as a lightweighting material in the automotive industry. This demand is forecast to be met by China, which dominates magnesium metal production and accounted for almost 90% of the global supply in 2023.    

Given the idling of US Magnesium’s operations and its lack of magnesium production over the last two years, the US has become wholly reliant on magnesium metal imports and recycling to support its domestic needs. Despite this, the USA has invested heavily in various magnesium metal projects through the DoD and the DoE, as magnesium is listed as a strategic mineral for defence purposes related to the reduction of titanium. US-based projects, such as those owned by Magrathea and Big Blue Technologies, aim to bring magnesium metal production back to the USA. Furthermore, these companies are pioneering new technologies to reduce the high energy costs and high carbon emissions associated with conventional magnesium metal extraction, which have historically limited the growth of the industry outside China.