# US Army awards 75-year Utah depot lease for heavy rare earth refining

*The term sheet gives REalloys access to 200 acres at Tooele Army Depot to separate dysprosium and terbium ahead of a 2027 Pentagon ban on Chinese magnets.*

**Published:** November 5, 2026  
**By:** Mina Okoro  
**Section:** Trade & Industrial Policy — Cross-border  
**Format:** Policy Tracker  
**Confidence:** medium  
**Source:** https://eastasiabrief.com/trade-policy/us-army-awards-75-year-utah-depot-lease-heavy-1152  
**Publisher:** East Asia Brief (https://eastasiabrief.com/)

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## What to know

- U.S. Army signed a 75-year lease term sheet with REalloys on Nov. 4, 2026
- Deal covers 200 acres at Tooele Army Depot to process dysprosium and terbium
- Pentagon ban on Chinese rare earth magnets takes effect Jan. 1, 2027

![Workers in hard hats stand before a vast desert construction site with heavy machinery, cranes, and an industrial processing plant. (AI-generated image)](https://eastasiabrief.com/media/2026-11-05-65386836a7d2.webp)
*Workers in hard hats stand before a vast desert construction site with heavy machinery, cranes, and an industrial processing plant. (AI-generated image)*

The U.S. Department of the Army executed a commercial term sheet on Nov. 4, 2026, for an unprecedented 75-year lease to site a heavy rare earth processing plant on military land in Utah.

The agreement grants REalloys Inc. access to 200 acres—roughly 810,000 square meters—at Tooele Army Depot to separate dysprosium and terbium. China currently controls more than 99% of global separation capacity for those two heavy rare earth elements.

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Cite as: East Asia Brief, "US Army awards 75-year Utah depot lease for heavy rare earth refining," November 5, 2026. https://eastasiabrief.com/trade-policy/us-army-awards-75-year-utah-depot-lease-heavy-1152