The hidden hand

The Soviet uranium plant now makes EV magnets

Neo Performance Materials converted a classified Cold War nuclear weapons facility into Europe's rare earth processing hub.

The number

1946built by Stalin

Sillamäe, a closed Soviet city so secret it didn't appear on maps, processed uranium for nuclear weapons until the USSR collapsed. The decontaminated nuclear infrastructure now separates rare earth oxides for electric vehicle magnets—the same industrial site, repurposed for the clean energy transition.

Source: Sillamäe — Wikipedia · Wikipedia · Jan 1, 2024

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