June 2 - The U.S. Department of Energy has selected demonstration projects in Louisiana and Oklahoma to receive a total of $134 million in federal funding aimed at extracting rare earth elements from industrial waste streams. The awards are part of Washington's push to increase domestic critical minerals production and reduce reliance on China, which currently dominates global rare earth supplies.
Louisiana project: About $67 million of the funding is allocated to a joint effort led by the Colorado School of Mines and ElementUSA to build a facility in Louisiana focused on extracting and refining rare earth elements from bauxite waste. The plant is designed to operate at commercial-test scale and is expected to produce between 150 and 1,000 metric tons of rare earths annually from tailings.
Oklahoma project: The DOE also selected a Phoenix Tailings-led project to construct a demonstration plant in Oklahoma. That effort, conducted in partnership with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, aims to convert industrial waste into high-purity rare earth metals and to establish an alternative domestic supply route for these materials.
Separately, in May the agency selected rare earth magnet maker USA Rare Earth to receive up to $19.3 million for a pilot rare earth processing project intended to strengthen domestic supply chains.
The selected projects vary in scale and stage, with the Louisiana facility slated for commercial-scale testing and the Oklahoma site positioned as a demonstration plant. Both initiatives focus on recovering critical minerals from waste streams rather than primary ore mining, reflecting a targeted approach to increasing domestic output from existing industrial byproducts.
By prioritizing processing and refining capabilities within the United States, the funded projects are intended to help diversify supply routes for rare earth elements. The DOE's selections highlight a policy emphasis on developing domestic processing infrastructure and testing technologies that could be scaled if demonstration and pilot efforts meet expectations.
Summary: The Department of Energy will provide $134 million for rare earth projects in Louisiana and Oklahoma to extract critical minerals from industrial waste. Approximately $67 million will fund a Colorado School of Mines and ElementUSA-led Louisiana facility that aims to refine rare earths from bauxite tailings and produce 150 to 1,000 metric tons annually. A Phoenix Tailings and MIT partnership will build a demonstration plant in Oklahoma to produce high-purity rare earth metals. In May, the DOE also selected USA Rare Earth for up to $19.3 million to support a pilot processing project.