CSyARES: Enabling Circular, Transparent Rare Earth Value Chains in Europe
The EIT RawMaterials-supported CSyARES project is helping make transparency and circularity a reality across the rare-earth magnet value chain.
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Securing a sustainable supply of rare earth elements (REEs) is now firmly at the top of Europe’s strategic agenda. Through the Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA) and the RESourceEU Action Plan, the European Commission is accelerating efforts to strengthen domestic supply chains for these critical raw materials—while also raising requirements for circularity, transparency and environmental performance.
This shift means companies must demonstrate where their materials come from, what they contain, and how they impact the environment. A wind turbine manufacturer, for example, may need to account for the rare earths in its generators, while an automotive supplier must increasingly track the materials used in electric motors. Until recently, the tools and methodologies needed to do this in a consistent way were fragmented or missing altogether.
The CSyARES (Circular System for Assessing Rare Earth Sustainability) project was designed to address this gap. Funded by EIT RawMaterials and led by Circularise, the project brought together partners across the rare-earth magnet value chain to link supply-chain traceability with life-cycle assessment (LCA).
Getting ahead of a growing challenge
“When the project started back in 2021, life-cycle assessment and supply-chain transparency for rare-earth magnets were still niche topics,” says Teresa Oberhauser, Head of EU Research and Government Relations at Circularise. “But we quickly saw that the fragmentation and lack of life-cycle assessments for rare-earth magnets were common challenges across the industry.”
This affected the entire value chain—from upstream material suppliers and refiners to magnet producers and downstream manufacturers—because reliable sustainability assessments depend on data that is often difficult to access.
“The rare-earth magnet industry is very small,” Teresa explains. “Keeping suppliers, material composition, and pricing confidential is critical.” As a result, companies have often been cautious about participating in transparency initiatives—even as regulatory requirements and market expectations continue to grow.
Enabling data sharing in a sensitive supply chain
As project coordinator, Circularise was well placed to address this challenge. Its approach enables companies to share relevant information—such as material composition or origin—while retaining control over sensitive data.
Within CSyARES, this made it possible to gather input across multiple tiers of the supply chain, from raw material production through to magnet manufacturing and final applications.
Minviro, a consultancy specialising in life-cycle assessment for the mining and metals sector, contributed tools to measure environmental impact. Industrial partners—including BEC GmbH and Grundfos—tested the system in real-world applications such as industrial pumps and equipment.
Connecting traceability with environmental assessment
A key outcome of CSyARES was linking two capabilities often developed separately: tracking materials and assessing their environmental impact.
By integrating Circularise’s traceability system with Minviro’s LCA tools, environmental assessments can be based on real supply-chain data rather than estimates—addressing a major bottleneck in sustainability reporting.
The project also addressed the lack of common methodologies. Working with the Rare Earth Industry Association, the consortium developed some of the first product category rules (PCRs) for rare-earth materials, providing a shared basis for LCAs and environmental product declarations (EPDs).
“Working closely with companies—testing, getting feedback, and adjusting along the way—helped make sure the system was really built for industry,” says Teresa.
Turning data into circular outcomes
By securely collecting information on material composition, origin and processing, the CSyARES system enables faster and more reliable environmental assessments.
It also provides a clearer view of what is contained in products at the end of life—supporting better decisions around recycling and recovery. For example, when an electric motor, wind turbine component or industrial pump reaches the end of life, manufacturers can use this data to identify which rare earths are present, rather than losing them through shredding or downcycling.
“What’s powerful is that you collect the data once,” Teresa explains, “and then you can use it for traceability, sustainability assessments, and regulatory compliance at the same time.”
At a time of geopolitical uncertainty and growing concern about Europe’s dependence on imported materials, greater visibility into supply chains also supports resilience. Better data can help companies identify risks, improve resource efficiency and strengthen the use of secondary raw materials.
Building on the success of the CSyARES project, the project partners are continuing to develop and apply the system, with plans to expand its use across the rare-earth industry.
The CSyARES project is just one of a number of EIT RawMaterials-supported initiatives working to strengthen Europe’s rare earth value chain, from investing in the production of recycled rare-earth magnets to fostering collaboration across industry, research and policy.
