NEO-CYCLE Policy Brief

The NEO-CYCLE project has published its first policy brief, presenting key results achieved after 18 months of implementation and outlining strategic directions for advancing rare earth element (REE) upcycling in Europe.

📄 Read the full Policy Brief:

👉 Download here (PDF)

Turning E-waste into Strategic Resources

Waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) is one of the fastest-growing waste streams in Europe. At the same time, critical raw materials such as neodymium (Nd), iron (Fe), and boron (B), essential for clean technologies, remain largely unrecovered.

NEO-CYCLE addresses this challenge by developing innovative technologies to recover and upcycle these materials from end-of-life electronics. The policy brief presents lab-scale validated processes, including solid-state chlorination and electrochemical leaching, demonstrating high recovery rates and strong potential for industrial application.

Key Results

• Successful lab-scale validation of technologies for recovering Nd, Fe, and B from e-waste magnets
• Development of integrated upcycling pathways into advanced materials and industrial applications
• Preliminary sustainability assessments highlighting the importance of value chain cooperation and social aspects

Supporting EU Policy Objectives

The results contribute directly to the objectives of the Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA) and the WEEE Directive, providing evidence that higher recycling rates and circular value chains for rare earth elements are achievable in Europe.

By improving resource efficiency and reducing dependency on imports, NEO-CYCLE supports Europe’s transition towards a circular and climate-neutral economy.

Key Policy Recommendations

• Creating markets for recycled rare earth materials
• Ensuring reliable feedstock supply from e-waste streams
• Enhancing data transparency and circularity tracking
• Providing financial incentives for upcycling technologies and market uptake

Looking Ahead

As the project progresses towards pilot-scale implementation, NEO-CYCLE will continue to develop sustainable technologies, strengthen stakeholder collaboration, and contribute to shaping EU policies in the field of critical raw materials.

🎬The Neo-Cycle Project Video Is Out

And It Changes How We See Circular Innovation

From Critical Raw Materials to electrochemical breakthroughs: discover the innovation shaping Europe’s circular future.

We are excited to officially launch the Neo-Cycle project video, offering a dynamic inside look at how our consortium is tackling one of Europe’s most pressing sustainability challenges: the circularity of Critical Raw Materials.

Bringing together cutting-edge electrochemistry, cross-sector collaboration, advanced digital tools,

and specialized online trainings, Neo-Cycle is paving the way toward scalable, sustainable solutions that support Europe’s green and digital transitions.

Neo-Cycle Online Training

📢 Neo-Cycle Online Training

Gain a general understanding of electrochemistry, its applications in extractive metallurgy,

and its potential role in the strategic development of European industries (e.g. recovery of critical elements),

including examples of developments from the NEO-CYCLE project.

🔬 Basic Electrochemistry Course for Metal Dissolution and Separation

📅 29 January

⏰ 3:00 PM (CET)

💻 Online | Duration: ~1.5 hours

📌 Registration:

https://tinyurl.com/s8ycvawz

The course will be delivered by TU Bergakademie Freiberg (TUBAF) and Confagricoltura.

🎯 Who should attend?

Neo-Cycle project partners

Students and early-career researchers

External stakeholders: actors from the value chains addressed by the project

Workshop on Women Leadership Development

Empowering Women in Deep Tech Leadership

The NEO-CYCLE project successfully held its first online workshop on Women Leadership Development, bringing together around 40 participants from research, industry, and public authorities across Europe.

The workshop explored key barriers and enablers for women’s career progression in deep tech, with a forward-looking discussion on the strategic role of women leaders by 2035. Facilitated by Olga Trofymova, participants highlighted the need to address systemic barriers such as gender bias and the maternity penalty, strengthen structural support through inclusive policies and flexible work models, and increase the visibility of women role models in leadership positions.

“These discussions are an important step toward inclusive innovation within the NEO-CYCLE project,” noted E. Macarena García-Ayala, emphasizing the strong engagement and shared commitment of participants.

The insights gathered will be integrated into the NEO-CYCLE framework, reinforcing the project’s commitment to gender equality as a key driver of sustainable innovation, including the circular upcycling of rare-earth magnets from e-waste.

Consortium Meeting in Pavia

As part of the upcoming annual Consortium Meeting in Pavia on 1 October, Fraunhofer IKTS, together with Confagricoltura will be hosting a training course:
“Basic Hydrometallurgy Course for Metal Dissolution and Separation.”
This course will provide valuable insights into the fundamentals of hydrometallurgy, focusing on dissolution and separation techniques essential for advancing sustainable recycling and resource recovery.
🌍 The session will be available both on-site and online, ensuring everyone can take part!
This course is recommended for stakeholders in the four NEO-CYCLE project value chains — pharmaceutical, ammonia, fertilizers, and polymers — supporting the sustainable upcycling of spent NdFeB magnets from HDDs.
💡 We look forward to your participation in driving innovation in circular economy and critical raw materials!

👉 Click here to register

🚀 NEO-CYCLE 1st e-newsletter

The NEO-CYCLE Horizon Europe project is advancing sustainable upcycling of NdFeB magnets, turning e-waste into high-quality materials for green applications. Since its kick-off in Sevilla, the consortium has made strong progress — from magnet collection and innovative recovery processes to digital modeling and pilot plant design.

Recent highlights include presentations at Ecomondo 2024, the EURAW Seville conference, and SETAC Europe 2025, as well as a workshop on gender equality in engineering. The project has also released its first press release and launched an interactive quiz to raise awareness.

Stay tuned as NEO-CYCLE moves into its crucial second year, scaling up recovery processes and shaping a sustainable future for critical raw materials.

👉 Read more

🌍 NEO-CYCLE Factsheet Released

The NEO-CYCLE project is demonstrating innovative methods to sustainably upcycle NdFeB magnets from hard disk drives, turning waste into catalysts for pharmaceuticals, fertilizers, polymers, and green ammonia. By combining advanced processes such as Solid-State Chlorination and electrochemical extraction with sustainability assessments and digital product passports, NEO-CYCLE strengthens Europe’s capacity to recycle rare earths and boron.

This initiative ensures a secure supply of critical raw materials while fostering a circular economy and supporting Europe’s strategic autonomy in green technologies.

👉 Discover more

Neo-Cycle project update

📢 We’re proud to announce that the first press release of the Neo-Cycle project is now live!
📰 Read more about how Neo-Cycle is driving breakthrough technologies for upcycling critical raw materials — from element recovery to women’s leadership in sustainability:

Baltic News Service (BNS) agency

The Baltic Times VMU webpage

European Raw Materials Clustering Event

Neo-Cycle was recently presented at the European Raw Materials Clustering Event in Seville, Spain, and at Ecomondo, the leading annual fair in the green and circular economy sectors in Rimini, Italy.