Rare Earth Directory

Government support

DOE rare earth funding awards (2026 tracker)

DOE rare earth funding is money from the Department of Energy for US projects that recover or process rare earths, mostly from waste, and nearly all of the 2026 announcements are selections for award negotiation, not awards. Two demonstration facilities (Jun 2, 2026) and five coal-waste pilots (Jul 1, 2026) are at that stage, worth $134M and $75M as announced.

DOE says selection is not a commitment to issue an award or provide funding, and amounts may change in negotiation. The only completed DOE rare earth award tracked here is about $24.2M for Rare Element Resources' Upton demonstration plant in Wyoming.

Verified through Oct 1, 2026

See every selectionWhat the status means

At a glance

Programs
Rare Earth Elements Demonstration Facility Program; Mines & Metals Capacity Expansion, Topic Area 1 (coal-based pilots)
Run by
The Office of Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation; the Manufacturing Deployment Office for the demonstration program and NETL for the pilots
Status
Selected for award negotiations: not a commitment to fund
Origin
A nearly $1B DOE announcement for critical minerals supply chains in Aug 2025
Next
Award negotiations, and Topic Area 2 (all industries) selections at a later date
Demonstration facilities
$134MTwo selections, Jun 2, 2026
Coal-waste pilots
$75MFive selections, Jul 1, 2026
Projects selected in 2026
7None reported as awarded
Upton demonstration plant
$24.2MThe one DOE award tracked here

What is DOE rare earth funding?

DOE rare earth funding is money from the Department of Energy for US projects that recover or process rare earths, mostly from unconventional sources such as mine waste, bauxite residue and coal by-products. Its Office of Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation runs the 2026 programs: a demonstration facility program with $134M selected and a pilot program with $75M selected for coal-based projects.

The programs fund pilots and demonstration plants, not mines. A demonstration facility shows that a recovery process works at a scale near commercial; a pilot is smaller. Neither makes a company a producer.

Which rare earth projects has DOE funded or selected?

DOE selected two demonstration facilities on Jun 2, 2026, Colorado School of Mines with ElementUSA in Louisiana and Phoenix Tailings, and five coal-waste pilots on Jul 1, 2026. It approved about $24.2M in funding for the Upton demonstration plant in Wyoming in Dec 2023, the one completed award tracked here.

DOE rare earth selections and awards tracked in this directory, newest first
RecipientProgram and projectAmountDateStatus
University of North DakotaGrand Forks; pilot at the Falkirk mine near UnderwoodMines & Metals pilots, coal-based industry: recovers rare earths and other critical minerals from North Dakota lignite.Not disclosedPart of $75M for fiveJul 1, 2026Selected
Valor MetalsNew York, New YorkMines & Metals pilots: rare earths, germanium, gallium and aluminum from coal by-products.Not disclosedJul 1, 2026Selected
CONSOL InnovationsCanonsburg, PennsylvaniaMines & Metals pilots: rare earths and critical materials from coal waste tailings at Core's Pennsylvania Mining Complex.Not disclosedJul 1, 2026Selected
American ResourcesFishers, Indiana; consortium with ReElementMines & Metals pilots: rare earths and other critical minerals from coal-based by-products.Not disclosedJul 1, 2026Selected
PeabodySt. Louis; Rawhide mine, WyomingMines & Metals pilots: a mixed rare earth concentrate from Powder River Basin coal and coal-based feedstock. The Wyoming Energy Authority granted $6.25M in matching funds.Not disclosedJul 1, 2026Selected
Colorado School of MinesWith ElementUSA, PNNL, Principal Mineral and Rare Earth TechnologiesRare Earth Demonstration Facility Program: a facility near the Gramercy alumina refinery in St. John the Baptist Parish, Louisiana, turning bauxite residue ("red mud") into rare earth oxides and metals.$67MSchool-reportedJun 2, 2026Selected
Phoenix TailingsWith MIT and the University of MinnesotaRare Earth Demonstration Facility Program: a demonstration-scale facility for high-purity rare earth metals from industrial waste. DOE's first announcement named Ardmore, Oklahoma; the page was later updated to simplify locations.About $66MCompany-reported; project cost $147.8MJun 2, 2026Selected
Rare Element ResourcesUpton, WyomingFunding for the Upton rare earth demonstration plant, which supports Bear Lodge.About $24.2MBudget approved Dec 2023Awarded

Amounts for the two demonstration facilities come from the recipients; DOE gave only the $134M total. DOE did not disclose amounts for the five pilots, which share $75M. State grants and other federal funding are on the government support tracker.

What does "selected for award negotiations" mean?

It means DOE has picked a project to negotiate with and has not committed any money. DOE states that selection is not a commitment to issue an award or provide funding, that it may cancel negotiations and rescind a selection for any reason, and that award amounts are subject to change.

Some recipients and press reports call these selections awards. The Colorado School of Mines announced a "$67M DOE award" and Phoenix Tailings a "$66 million grant" within days of DOE's announcement. This directory follows DOE's wording and shows the rows as announced, never as closed or awarded.

Which DOE programs do the rare earth selections come from?

The $75M coal-based pilots are Topic Area 1 of the Mines & Metals Capacity Expansion opportunity, which stems from DOE's August 2025 announcement of nearly $1 billion to scale mining, processing and manufacturing technologies across the critical minerals supply chain. The $134M Rare Earth Elements Demonstration Facility Program opened on Dec 1, 2025.

How the 2026 selections came about
  1. Aug 2025 DOE announces nearly $1B for critical minerals supply chains History The umbrella announcement that the coal-based pilot selections stem from.
  2. Nov 2025 Byproduct recovery pilot opportunity Reported Press reports describe a $275M funding opportunity to pilot byproduct critical minerals and materials recovery at domestic industrial facilities.
  3. Dec 1, 2025 Rare Earth Elements Demonstration Facility funding opportunity Open Up to $134M. Letters of intent were due Dec 10, 2025 and applications Jan 5, 2026.
  4. Jun 2, 2026 Two demonstration facilities selected Selected Colorado School of Mines and Phoenix Tailings, for $134M in total.
  5. Jul 1, 2026 Five coal-based pilots selected Selected University of North Dakota, Valor Metals, CONSOL Innovations, American Resources and Peabody, for $75M in total. NETL manages them.
  6. Not dated Topic Area 2 selections Next Pilots for all industries, which DOE says will be announced at a later date.

What is next for DOE rare earth funding?

The next steps are award negotiations for the seven selected projects and selections for Topic Area 2, Mines & Metals Pilots for all industries, which DOE says it will announce later. The sources checked give no dates for either, so this directory will show an award only when DOE or the recipient reports one.

Which US projects, companies and states does this touch?

The pages below carry the figures, the sources and the dates for each project or company named here.

Questions about DOE rare earth funding

What is the DOE Rare Earth Elements Demonstration Facility Program?

A program run by the Manufacturing Deployment Office to demonstrate full-scale integrated rare earth extraction and separation facilities in the United States. DOE opened a funding opportunity of up to $134M on Dec 1, 2025 and selected two projects on Jun 2, 2026.

Did DOE award Phoenix Tailings $66M?

Not yet. DOE selected Phoenix Tailings for award negotiations on Jun 2, 2026. The company reports about $66M. DOE says selection is not a commitment to fund and amounts may change.

Did DOE award ElementUSA and the Colorado School of Mines $67M?

DOE selected the Colorado School of Mines project, with ElementUSA, for award negotiations on Jun 2, 2026. The school reports $67M and calls it an award, while DOE says selection is not a commitment to fund.

How much DOE funding has been awarded to US rare earth projects?

Only about $24.2M for the Upton demonstration plant is a completed award in this directory. Another $209M is selected for negotiation: $134M for two demonstration facilities and $75M for five coal-waste pilots.

Which coal-waste rare earth pilots did DOE select?

The University of North Dakota (Falkirk mine), Valor Metals, CONSOL Innovations, American Resources and Peabody, on Jul 1, 2026, for $75M in total. DOE did not disclose individual amounts.

Where will the DOE-selected facilities be built?

The Colorado School of Mines facility is planned near the Gramercy alumina refinery in Louisiana. DOE's first announcement placed the Phoenix Tailings facility in Ardmore, Oklahoma, and the company's release names no site.

Sources and verification

Each profile lists its sources, a confidence grade and a verification date. Order of authority: official records (SEC filings, agency documents), company documents and technical reports, research papers, then independent press. Syndicated copies and reference works are labeled and are never the only source for a number. Company-reported figures are labeled as such, and non-binding deals are labeled "letter of intent" or "conditional".

Tags show what kind of source each link is. How sources are ranked

Policy and funding

Which other policy explainers are there?

Nine explainers cover the foreign controls, defense rules, permitting steps and funding programs behind the projects in this directory.