DOE rare earths funding is open to recyclers

The Office of Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation of the United States Department of Energy (DOE) has announced a notice of funding opportunity for up to $134 million the DOE has made available “to enhance domestic supply chains for rare earth elements (REEs).”

DOE says the intention of the funding is to support projects that demonstrate the commercial viability of recovering and refining REEs from feedstocks including mine tailings, electronic scrap and other waste or residual materials.

“These efforts will reduce America’s dependence on foreign sources, strengthen national security and promote American energy independence,” states DOE.

 “For too long, the U.S. has relied on foreign nations for the minerals and materials that power our economy,” says DOE Secretary Chris Wright. “We have these resources here at home, but years of complacency ceded America’s mining and industrial base to other nations.”

REEs include praseodymium, neodymium, terbium and dysprosium, and DOE describes them as used in “vital components in advanced manufacturing, defense systems and high-performance magnets used in power generation and electric motors.”

The funding opportunities are tied to DOE’s Office of Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation’s Rare Earth Demonstration Facility program, designed to demonstrate full-scale integrated REE extraction and separation facilities in the U.S. The early December notice follows a DOE notice of intent released in August.

A webinar with additional information on the funding opportunity will be held at 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time on Tuesday, Dec. 9, while what DOE calls non-binding, non-mandatory letters of intent are requested by Dec. at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time. The agency says full applications must be submitted by 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time on Monday, Jan. 5, 2026.