Northlake is suddenly in the running for a massive industrial prize: MP Materials is "strongly considering" the town for a roughly $1.2 billion next‑generation magnet plant that could become a marquee piece of the Dallas–Fort Worth manufacturing corridor. If the project moves ahead, it would boost U.S. production of rare‑earth magnets used in electric vehicles, consumer electronics and defense systems, but company leaders say no final site has been selected.
Where the company is looking
The site on MP Materials’ short list is a roughly 100‑acre tract north of Victory Circle and Dale Earnhardt Way, between FM 156 and Interstate 35W in Northlake. The land is owned by an entity tied to Ross Perot Jr.'s Hillwood development group, the force behind AllianceTexas, according to the Fort Worth Report.
Federal backing and big finance
MP Materials announced a public‑private partnership with the Department of Defense in July 2025 that includes a $400 million preferred equity purchase, a $150 million loan, and long‑term offtake and price‑floor commitments meant to reduce the risk of large upstream investment. Those federal commitments are central to the company’s plan to speed up a second magnet plant and related processing projects, according to MP Materials.
How big would it be?
Company filings describe the "10X" build‑out as a program that could lift total U.S. magnet capacity to roughly 10,000 metric tons by 2028, with the project backed by a $1.0 billion construction financing commitment from JPMorgan Chase and Goldman Sachs. Apple has separately pledged about $500 million to buy American‑made magnets and support recycling and processing capacity, according to Apple.
Local reaction and approvals
Northlake officials have placed a tax‑abatement agreement tied to an entity associated with MP Materials on the Jan. 22 city council agenda, although any local abatement would depend on securing state economic incentives. Developers and local leaders, including representatives connected to Hillwood, say they are working to land the investment, while MP Materials officials have told reporters that "no final decisions have been made at this time." Those developments were reported by the Fort Worth Report.
What it would mean locally
MP Materials’ Independence facility in Fort Worth is already producing magnets as the company ramps capacity toward roughly 1,000 metric tons a year, and that initial build has created an advanced‑manufacturing payroll in the region, according to MP Materials. A new Northlake plant at full scale would be significantly larger and, local officials and developers say, could support dozens to hundreds of direct jobs along with broader supplier and logistics activity in the area.
Incentives and legal picture
Any tax abatement or local incentive package would require city approval and, in some cases, state economic‑development sign‑off. Those votes will help determine whether a Northlake deal is realistic. The Department of Defense offtake guarantees and price‑floor commitments, detailed in MP Materials' SEC filing, change the commercial risk equation by locking in demand and a baseline price for key rare‑earth oxides, which the filing says helped convince commercial banks to back the construction financing.
Next steps
MP Materials says it is still evaluating locations and has not made a final choice. Northlake’s Jan. 22 council meeting is the next public moment for the project. Expect a flurry of additional filings, company statements and council records in the weeks ahead as officials and developers try to nail down incentives and a construction timeline.
