Chalyx plant targets 10,000 metric tons of high-purity iron and steel annually
The U.S. Defense Department has invested $65 million in Hertha Metals, a Conroe, Texas-based startup that plans to produce high-purity iron for U.S.-made rare-earth magnets essential to F-35 jet fighters and missile-guidance systems, the company said.
Hertha Metals said it closed a $133.65 million Series A financing round that includes the Pentagon equity stake. The startup said the capital will fund the construction and early operations of a roughly $100 million production facility called Chalyx, designed to produce 10,000 metric tons of high-purity iron and steel annually, mostly to supply U.S. magnet makers.
The Defense Department routed the U.S. equity investment through its Industrial Base Analysis and Sustainment program, working in partnership with its Economic Defense Unit, founder and CEO Laureen Meroueh said. A Pentagon official, asked about the transaction, said the department doesn’t comment on speculation about potential transactions.
Once operating, the Chalyx facility is designed to produce 10,000 metric tons of high-purity iron and steel annually, according to the company. High-purity iron is a critical input for rare-earth magnets, which Hertha Metals said are essential to F-35 jet fighters and missile-guidance systems.
The financing comes as the Trump administration is trying to loosen China’s stranglehold on minerals vital to U.S. defense and advanced technologies, the WSJ’s Rhiannon Hoyle writes.
The WSJ did not name the other Series A investors or their contribution amounts and did not report a production timeline for the Chalyx plant.
The Wall Street Journal’s Logistics Report newsletter reported the financing Wednesday. Mark R. Long is editor of the newsletter.