The US Department of Energy has selected nine projects for $162 million in potential funding aimed at recovering critical minerals from mine waste and industrial feedstocks. The initiative is part of a broader push to strengthen domestic supplies of materials essential for energy, defence and manufacturing sectors.
US Critical Minerals Funding Supports Waste Recovery
The projects selected under this US Critical Minerals Funding programme target scandium, copper, antimony and rare earth elements. Rather than focusing on new deposits, the effort centres on extracting value from existing mines, tailings, industrial facilities and other feedstocks. The programme aims to move recovery technologies from laboratory and pilot stages towards commercial production.
“Leveraging existing bench-scale and pilot-scale facilities is a vital opportunity to produce critical materials necessary for our energy, defence and economic security,” said Audrey Robertson, Assistant Secretary of Energy. “By investing in these facilities, we can de-risk commercial scale production technologies to grow new economic and manufacturing opportunities.”
The US Critical Minerals Funding selections include Anactisis, Still Bright, Nusano and SiTration, which are advancing processes from laboratory or bench scale to prototype demonstrations. Thompson Creek Metals Company USA, Felix Gold’s Treasure Creek project in Alaska, DISA Technologies, Alcoa and Trigg Minerals were selected to move existing pilot-scale technologies closer to pre-commercial demonstration.
Mining Waste Becomes a Source of Critical Minerals
Most of the selected projects are pursuing unconventional sources of critical minerals, including mine waste and industrial byproducts that previously held little economic value. The approach pairs new mineral recovery technologies with facilities and material already in place, potentially shortening the path to production.
Felix Gold’s Treasure Creek project near Fairbanks, Alaska, focuses on recovering high-grade, near-surface antimony using existing mining infrastructure. Antimony is used in ammunition, sensors and flame retardants, making it strategically important to the defence sector. SiTration, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology spinout based in Cambridge, has developed technology to recover copper and other critical materials from diluted mining waste streams at operating sites. Other projects are looking at old tailings, abandoned copper mines and existing aluminium facilities.
The critical minerals recovery effort reflects a growing recognition that mining waste and industrial residues can serve as viable domestic sources of strategic materials, turning liabilities into potential supply streams.
Funding Targets Domestic Mineral Supply
This US Critical Minerals Funding round builds on the Department of Energy’s August 2025 announcement of nearly $1 billion aimed at expanding US mining, processing and manufacturing capacity across critical-mineral supply chains. It also follows $75 million announced in July for five projects seeking to produce rare earth elements and other critical materials from coal and coal-based feedstocks.
Together, the programmes reflect a wider effort to diversify the domestic mineral supply as Washington seeks to reduce exposure to foreign producers. China has dominated the production and processing of many critical minerals for decades and has used mineral export restrictions during trade disputes, heightening concerns over access to materials needed for military equipment, energy technologies and advanced manufacturing.
The latest selections, however, do not guarantee that the companies will receive the stated funding. The projects must first undergo award negotiations with the Department of Energy, which can change award amounts, cancel negotiations or rescind a selection before funds are issued.