The Government of India has approved a proposal from Lohum Cleantech Pvt. Ltd. to manufacture rare earth permanent magnets from rare earth oxide, along with 29 additional proposals for electronics component manufacturing. The move is aimed at strengthening domestic capabilities in critical materials and electronics supply chains.
The approvals were granted by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology under the Electronics Components Manufacturing Scheme. The newly cleared proposals involve a projected investment of ₹7,104 crore and expected production worth ₹84,515 crore.
Total Approvals Reach 75 Projects
According to the ministry, the latest approvals build on an earlier round where 46 applications were cleared with a proposed investment of ₹54,567 crore. With the current approvals, a total of 75 applications have now been cleared under the scheme.
These approved projects collectively account for an expected investment of ₹61,671 crore and are projected to generate direct employment for 65,040 people across India.
Wide Range of Electronics Components
The newly approved projects cover manufacturing of 16 product categories with applications across sectors such as mobile manufacturing, telecom, consumer electronics, strategic electronics, automotive, and IT hardware.
These include:
- Display modules and sub-assemblies
- Antennas, capacitors, connectors and heat sinks
- Lithium-ion cells and relays
- Resistors, transducers and inductors
- Surface-mount device (SMD) passives
- Flexible printed circuit boards (FPCBs)
- Laminates and metallized films for capacitors
- Rare earth permanent magnets
The approvals also include several first-of-their-kind facilities in India, including the country’s first surface-mount device passive plant for tantalum-based capacitors, the first flexible printed circuit board manufacturing facility, and the first rare earth permanent magnet plant.
Lohum’s Rare Earth Magnet Initiative
The project awarded to Lohum Cleantech marks India’s first initiative to manufacture rare earth permanent magnets from rare earth oxide domestically. The development is considered a major step toward building indigenous capabilities in advanced materials and reducing dependence on imports.
Rare earth permanent magnets are critical components used in electric vehicles, wind turbines, consumer electronics, defence systems, and industrial automation.
Heavy Industries Ministry Announces Magnet Manufacturing Scheme
Separately, the Ministry of Heavy Industries has released a Request for Proposal (RFP) for selecting beneficiaries to set up integrated Sintered NdFeB rare earth permanent magnet manufacturing facilities.
The proposed facilities will have a combined production capacity of 6,000 metric tonnes per annum (MTPA) under the Scheme to Promote Manufacturing of Sintered Rare Earth Permanent Magnet.
Under this scheme:
- Selected companies will receive annual production allocation of 600 to 1,200 MTPA
- Capital subsidy of ₹750 crore will be provided
- Sales-linked incentives of ₹6,450 crore will be offered
- Assured supply of Neodymium-Praseodymium oxide will be provided
The three lowest bidders selected through the tender process will receive limited assured supply of Neodymium-Praseodymium oxide from IREL (India) Ltd.
The combined initiatives are expected to strengthen India’s domestic manufacturing ecosystem for advanced electronics and critical materials, while supporting sectors such as electric mobility, renewable energy, and strategic technologies.
