The US Department of Energy’s Office of Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation has announced funding of up to US$134 million (c. £100 million) to enhance domestic supply chains for rare earth elements (REEs).
The funding will support projects that demonstrate the commercial viability of recovering and refining REEs from unconventional feedstocks such as mine tailings, e-waste and other waste materials.
The USA imported 59% of the REEs it used in 2024, according to figures from the US Geological Survey. These elements, which include praseodymium, neodymium, terbium and dysprosium are critical for advance manufacturing, defence systems and high-performance magnets.
“For too long, the United States has relied on foreign nations for the minerals and materials that power our economy,” commented US secretary of energy Chris Wright.
“We have these resources here at home, but years of complacency ceded America’s mining and industrial base to other nations. Thanks to President Trump’s leadership, we are reversing that trend, rebuilding America’s ability to mine, process, and manufacture the materials essential to our energy and economic security.”
The Notice of Funding Opportunity follows a Notice of Intent announced in August.
The DOE is asking to receive non-binding letters of intent by 10 December 2025 to help plan its review process. Applications for the latest funding opportunity must be submitted by 5 January 2026.
According to the request an academic partner is required as a part of the project team, while a funding award requires a cost-share of at least 50% by the recipient.
Alongside initiatives to boost domestic minerals production, over the past few months the US administration has entered minerals framework agreements with allied nations, including Australia, Japan and Saudi Arabia.
