Now, the City of Sumter and Sumter County are not only home to one of the largest Air Force bases in the United States with Shaw Air Force Base, but also will soon host the first fully operational rare earth metal magnet production facility in the United States. On Friday, Nov. 7, the eVAC facility was crowded with officials from the county, state and federal government as well as the private sector as VAC Group Chief Executive Officer Erik Eschen and Scott Bessent, the 79th Secretary of the Treasury of the United States, visited the site.
Bessent was busy from his arrival to departure and made time to greet and chat with eVAC employees, many of whom are newly employed local residents.
China holds close to a monopoly on rare earths mining and refining as well as rare earths permanent magnets manufacturing. That advantage is one they've wielded frequently in trade and tariff disagreements with the United States and other countries reliant on them.
It's why Bessent endeavors to expand domestic procurement of these valuable resources. At the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Economic Leaders' Informal Dialogue on Friday, Oct. 31, Bessent's remarks addressed critical minerals and magnets as a focus area for the United States' economic policy.
"From critical minerals and magnets to semiconductors and energy," he said, "the United States is investing with its trading partners to build resilient production networks that reduce dependence on vulnerable sectors. These efforts make supply chains more secure and reliable for all."
This Sumter facility is the beginning of that. The Sumter facility, eVAC, is part of VAC Incorporated, and the rare earth neodymium-iron-boron (NdFeB) permanent magnets this facility produces are essential for renewables, automotive and other industries; even if you haven't heard of that specific permanent magnet, chances are, it's benefited you.
VAC is the parent company with more than a century of experience and manufactures rare-earth permanent magnets as well as inductive components and magnetic solutions across the globe. The products it designs and manufactures are used for medical technology, renewable energy, automotives, industrial automation and military equipment.
Bessent, a South Carolina native whose family still resides in the state for part of the year, said eVAC will advance domestic interests by breaking dependence on China for such vital and versatile products.
"This facility is the most important new facility in America," he told The Item in between leaving eVAC and attending a Boeing facility expansion that is expected to yield about 1,000 jobs. He lauded these advancements for his home state in light of the jobs lost when other manufacturers have closed and reflected on the plentiful manufacturing in the Southeast during his childhood, with production of everything from textiles to flame retardant.
The eVAC website states, "The eVAC facility and VAC's decades of experience in rare earth magnet technology and process intellectual property is a critical piece to ensuring North American domestic supply continuity."
It's a message emphasized by Eschen, who was selected first as chief financial officer for VAC in 2016, then as chief executive officer in 2018. He said it's crucial for Western governments to make their supply chains more resilient, especially for negotiation purposes. He explained that eVAC is ready to step up and hopes to add hundreds more jobs to its Sumter location along the way. Bessent was presented with some of the first finished products at Friday's event, which he said he will present to the president.
This step forward for the nation happened in Sumter thanks in large part to the planning and execution by Sumter Economic Development staff, as well as state and national incentives intending to promote America's economic and national security through domestic sourcing of these magnets.
"The Sumter Economic Development team and the LINK Alliance team are always busy, always intensely focused on showcasing our region's strengths," said Brian Rauschenbach, U.S. Air Force veteran and economic development project manager for Sumter Economic Development.
"There's not a better time to invest in our community," he continued. "Relationships with international companies, relationships with domestic companies are as great as it's ever been."
He said because of this, Sumter is poised for great success in coming years, even as VAC strives to procure a successful domestic supply of the products that fuel American life, from the hospital to the road.
Source: www.theitem.com
Aleksei Andrievskii is the founder of the ANDRIEVSKII SEA WEALTH family office in Cyprus, a member of the advisory board at Bendura Bank AG, Liechtenstein