ElementUSA and Colorado School of Mines Awarded $67M by Department of Energy for Construction of Rare Earth Processing Plant in Louisiana
CEDAR PARK, TX, UNITED STATES, June 3, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — ElementUSA, in partnership with Colorado School of Mines, this week announced a $67 million award from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to advance the design, construction, commissioning and operation of a rare earth element (REE) processing facility in St. John the Baptist Parish, Louisiana. The award builds on ElementUSA’s ongoing $29.9 million project with the Department of War (DOW) focused on gallium and scandium recovery and commercialization. Together, these programs materially advance ElementUSA’s plan to onshore critical mineral supply chains by scaling a proven, proprietary process that converts bauxite residue, the byproduct of alumina refining, into pig iron and a diversified suite of critical minerals and REEs.
“We are honored to receive the Department of Energy’s support and to partner with Colorado School of Mines on this important initiative,” said Ellis Sullivan, Chief Executive Officer of ElementUSA. “This project represents a significant step toward establishing a new domestic source of critical minerals and rare earth elements essential to advanced manufacturing, semiconductors, energy systems and national security. Beyond gallium and scandium, this program advances the recovery of a uniquely valuable mixed rare earth oxide basket with strong heavy rare earth and yttrium content. By combining Colorado School of Mines’ world-class expertise with ElementUSA’s commercial development platform, we are advancing a practical pathway to recover strategic materials from bauxite residue at commercial scale while strengthening America’s critical mineral supply chains and transforming an underutilized industrial waste stream into a nationally strategic resource.”
Technical credibility, scale and commercial pathway
• Proven technical process: ElementUSA’s integrated hydrometallurgical and pyrometallurgical flowsheet is engineered to co produce pig iron and recover critical metals and REEs, including scandium, gallium, germanium, yttrium, neodymium, praseodymium, dysprosium, terbium, gadolinium, titanium, vanadium, niobium, and tantalum, improving unit economics through diversified revenue.
• Commercial facility target: ElementUSA is advancing a phased development pathway to a full scale commercial facility targeting approximately 1 million tons per annum feed capacity at full scale. Estimated capital expenditure is approximately $1.1B. This facility has the potential to make the Louisiana residue one of the only depleting bauxite residue waste resources in the world, a benefit for all stakeholders. ElementUSA will be breaking ground on the first phase of this project in Louisiana later this month.
• Exclusive resource access: ElementUSA has secured exclusive access to the bauxite residue resource in St. John the Baptist Parish, Louisiana which is currently ~34 million tons (and growing) of proven reserves. At scale, this single resource has potential to produce 45–385% of U.S. annual demand for gallium, scandium, yttrium, germanium, ytterbium, dysprosium and gadolinium, along with significant concentrations of additional critical minerals.
• Competitive positioning: The Louisiana bauxite residue resource is uniquely differentiated from both traditional mined deposits and other industrial waste streams due to its highly polymetallic composition, containing more than 95% payable metals across iron, rare earth elements and critical minerals. This co-production capability represents a significant competitive advantage versus single-commodity mining projects by enabling lower production costs, diversified revenue streams and improved resilience to volatile pricing environments for rare earths and trace critical minerals. In addition to the Louisiana project, ElementUSA’s process platform is designed as a scalable global deployment model for bauxite residue resources worldwide. With more than 4 billion tons of bauxite residue estimated globally, the company believes its technology platform has the potential to unlock a substantial new domestic and international source of strategic minerals while addressing one of the world’s largest industrial waste challenges.
ElementUSA & Colorado School of Mines collaboration
ElementUSA’s Critical Resource Accelerator (CRA) in Cedar Park, Texas, is the company’s integrated lab to pilot hub for process validation, product qualification and scale up. The CRA collaborates closely with Colorado School of Mines on technical validation, mineral characterization, development and scale up studies. Led by Elizabeth Holley, the Colorado School of Mines Waste to Value Center brings together an interdisciplinary team to advance recovery of critical minerals from mine waste – from site selection through implementation. ElementUSA applauds Holley’s pioneering leadership and CSM’s scientific contributions to accelerating domestic critical minerals capabilities.
Strategic impact and commercialization
The DOE and DOW awards strengthen ElementUSA’s ability to finalize long term offtake agreements, attract additional financing, and accelerate facility buildout and commissioning of operations in Louisiana. ElementUSA is engaged with defense primes, semiconductor and advanced materials companies, and specialty off-takers on product qualification and contractual pathways that will enable phased commercial deliveries as the facility scales.
For more information about ElementUSA and the Critical Resource Accelerator, please visit www.elementusaminerals.com.
About ElementUSA
ElementUSA Inc. is accelerating America’s access to critical minerals by unlocking overlooked domestic resources and delivering the processing strength to supply industry and defense. The company develops innovative midstream processing infrastructure to recover minerals from both primary and secondary sources, addressing the rising demand from U.S. manufacturers in sectors like semiconductors, national defense, and energy infrastructure. ElementUSA is pioneering Waste2Market solutions that offer faster and more sustainable pathways than traditional mining. At the center of this effort is the Critical Resource Accelerator, a premier research and development hub focused on scalable mineral recovery processes.
About Colorado School of Mines
Colorado School of Mines is a public R1 research university focused on applied science and engineering, producing the talent, knowledge and innovations to serve industry and benefit society – all to create a more prosperous future. Based in Golden, Colorado, Mines is home to the world’s top mining and mineral engineering program and the only U.S.-based minerals and energy economics program. Mines’ expertise contributes to a rapidly growing critical minerals innovation ecosystem in Golden that includes the National Lab of the Rockies, a DOE Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation Lab; the U.S. Geological Survey’s Energy and Minerals Research Facility—opening on the Mines campus in 2027; and a strong network of industry partners. Learn more at mines.edu.
Dan Byrne
ElementUSA Inc.
email us here
Legal Disclaimer:
EIN Presswire provides this news content “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability
for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this
article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above.
Media gallery
