U.S. Funds Rare Earth Projects

The U.S. Department of Energy announced on Tuesday the allocation of $134 million in funding for rare earth element extraction projects in Louisiana and Oklahoma. This initiative aims to bolster domestic critical minerals production and reduce reliance on China, which currently dominates the global rare earths supply chain.

Approximately $67 million will support a project led by the Colorado School of Mines and ElementUSA to construct a facility in Louisiana. This plant will extract and refine rare earths from bauxite waste, with an anticipated annual production capacity of 150 to 1,000 metric tons from tailings. The facility is designed to test commercial-scale processing.

Additionally, the Department of Energy selected a project by Phoenix Tailings, in partnership with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, to establish a demonstration plant in Oklahoma. This plant will convert industrial waste into high-purity rare earth metals, creating a new domestic supply route. These investments follow a previous allocation of up to $19.3 million in May to USA Rare Earth for a pilot rare earth processing project.