Taking on China from Russia’s border: Inside Neo's rare earths factory

NARVA, Estonia — Europe's big bet to break China's rare earths dominance starts on Russia's doorstep.

The continent's largest rare-earth facility, situated on the very edge of NATO's eastern flank, is ramping up magnet production as part of a regional push to reduce its import reliance on Beijing.

Developed by Canada's Neo Performance Materials and opened in mid-September, the magnet plant sits in the small industrial city of Narva. This little-known border city is separated from Russia by the Narva River, which is an external frontier of both NATO and the European Union.

Analysts expect the facility to play an integral role in Europe's plan to reduce its dependence on China, while warning that the region faces a long and difficult road ahead if it is to achieve its mineral strateg