Magnetics Business & Technology - July/August 2023 - 26

INDUSTRY NEWS
Neo Performance Materials: Names New President; Acquires SG Technologies in UK, and
Rare Earths Exploration License in Greenland
Neo Performance Materials,
considered a bellwether
of the permanent
magnetics industry, has
named a new president
in concert with the
upcoming retirement of
its CEO and long-time
leader Constantine
Karayannopoulos and, in
rapid succession, recently
consummated two deals
that further its mines-tomagnets
vertical integraRahim
Suleman to become new CEO
of Neo Performance Materials
tion strategy:
*
By acquiring SG
Technologies Group Ltd
(SGTec) in the UK, Neo
moved further up the value chain and expands its specialty
manufacturing footprint in Europe to better serve rapidly growing
magnet demand from the electric vehicles, electronics and
clean energy industries.
*
In Greenland, it progressed another step in developing
its own rare earths mine as the government approved transfer
of an exploration license from Hudson Resources of Canada,
clearing the way for Neo to acquire it.
Neo announced on May 12 that Karayannoupoulos will retire
from the company and its board of directors on July 7, after
leading it for more than 25 years, most recently as chief executive
officer for the last three years. Rahim Suleman, currently
the president and Interim chief financial officer, will succeed
Karayannopoulos as CEO upon his retirement.
Suleman became president of Neo in January 2023, after serving
as executive vice president and chief financial officer since
January 2017. Previously he was chief financial officer at Stackpole
International, a global provider of fluid power systems and
powder metal technology from 2010 through to 2016.
" I would like to thank Constantine for his leadership, vision and
mentorship, " said Suleman. " Constantine has strengthened the
capabilities of the company and helped to build a strong foundation
for our continued success. "
" Neo's continuing geographic expansion and vertical integration
up the rare earth value chain in Europe - as evidenced by our
recent acquisition of SGTec's magnet manufacturing facility in
the UK and our groundbreaking this summer on a new stateof-the-art
plant in Estonia to produce rare earth magnets for
electric vehicles - illustrate our intense focus on moving quickly
to capitalize on growth opportunities where we can expand and
advance our product offering and into new applications and
markets. "
SG Technologies acquisition
Neo announced on April 18 the acquisition of a controlling
interest in SGTec, one of Europe's leading advanced, specialty
manufacturers of rare-earth-based and other high-performance
magnets for industrial and commercial markets. The purchase
further expands Neo's rare earth processing and magnet
26 Magnetics Business & Technology * July/August 2023
manufacturing footprint in Europe in strategic alignment with
its plans to launch production in 2025 of sintered rare earth
magnet manufacturing in Estonia for the electric vehicle, electronics,
energy-saving specialized motor applications and other
markets.
With over 200 employees working just outside of London, SGTec
was first established in the 1940s as an aluminum-nickelcobalt
permanent magnet manufacturer. Today, it produces a
variety of high-performance magnets and magnetic assemblies
for some of the world's leading brands in electric and hybrid vehicles,
multi-fuel and medium-duty engines, hydrogen fuel cell
vehicles, off-highway fuel systems, automotive systems, and
consumer electronics. It is recognized as a leader in the production
of fully dense bonded neodymium-iron-boron magnets,
soft magnetic composites for high-speed solenoids and electric
motor applications, and other high-performance magnets. For
example, non-rare earth magnets made by SGTec for automotive
fuel injectors are helping vehicle manufacturers prepare to
meet new and more stringent vehicle air emissions standards
under the proposed Euro 7 standards.
Neo's new acquisition, SG Technologies, makes 60 million magnetic
components a year. A key capability is the ability to perform
electromagnetic testing at the component level, giving customers
confidence that a product will perform as expected within their application.
Neo
acquired a 90% interest in SGTec with an initial payment of
$13.4 million plus future earnout considerations of up to another
$6.7 million in performance payments. The remaining 10%
of SGTec will continue to be owned by members of its senior
management team.
" I am very pleased to welcome the many
outstanding engineers, scientists, and professionals
at SGTec into Neo's global team,
whose decades of experience, know-how, and
leading-edge R&D will unlock unique synergies
working as a unit with our world-class
magnetics division, " said Karayannopoulos as
the present CEO of Neo. " This combination is
highly complementary to Neo as we continue
to move up the value stream. It expands our
magnet manufacturing and product development
footprint in Europe. It brings us in closer
Constantine
Karayannopoulos,
CEO of Neo,
retires in July
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Magnetics Business & Technology - July/August 2023

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