August 15, 2025
On August 13, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced its intent to release notices of funding opportunities (NOFO) totaling close to $1 billion to further the mining, processing, and manufacturing of critical minerals and materials, as reflected in President Trump’s January 2025 Executive Order Unleashing American Energy. This investment is intended to bolster and develop the domestic critical minerals and materials (CMM) industry in order to reduce foreign dependence and strengthen national security. Instead of a single program, the funding is strategically allocated across multiple specialized initiatives, each designed to address specific challenges within the CMM ecosystem. DOE will host a Domestic Critical Minerals and Materials Supply Chains Workshop on Wednesday, August 20, 2025, from 12:00 to 2:00 p.m. ET. to discuss the department’s CMM programs.
The announcements include:
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Critical Minerals and Materials Accelerator: The Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Technologies Office (AAMTO) plans to releaseup to $50 million this fall through the Critical Minerals and Materials (CMM) Accelerator program to develop an industry-led partnership to prototype and pilot innovative critical materials processing technologies in order to attract more capital investment. Individuals or organizations may also submit information on relevant areas of interest to be added to a list of potential teaming partners.
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Mines & Metals Capacity Expansion – Piloting Byproduct Critical Minerals and Materials Recovery at Domestic Industrial Facilities: The Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management (FECM) expects to issue a NOFO of approximately $250 million to support pilot programs at domestic industrial facilities that have the potential to produce mineral byproducts from existing industrial processes. This opportunity will address topics relevant to industry at large and the coal-based industry.
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Rare Earth Elements Demonstration Facility: The Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains (MESC) plans to announce a NOFO of up to $135 for the design, construction, and operation of a Rare Earth Element Demonstration Facility. This facility will demonstrate the extraction, separation, and refinement of REEs from unconventional feedstock sources to produce high-purity rare earth metals. This opportunity requires an academic partner on the project team, and the award would require a cost-share of at least 50 percent.
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Battery Materials Processing and Battery Manufacturing and Recycling Grant Program: MESC intends to post a NOFO of up to $500 million to expand U.S. critical mineral and materials processing and derivative battery manufacturing and recycling. The award would require a cost-share of at least 50 percent.
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Recover Critical Minerals from Industrial Wastewater: The Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) plans to publicize project selections totaling $40 million for the Realize Energy-rich Compound Opportunities Valorizing Extraction from Refuse Waters (RECOVER) program early this fall. RECOVER works to develop technologies to recover critical minerals from industrial wastewater thereby reducing reliance on imports and expanding domestic critical mineral sources.