U.S. Department of Energy Announces Intent to Fund Projects That Advance Critical Mineral Innovation, Efficiency, and Alternatives for a Strong Domestic Supply Chain
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management (FECM) today issued a notice of intent (NOI) to fund a Bipartisan Infrastructure Law program that will advance cost effective and environmentally responsible production, reuse, and recycling of critical minerals and materials in the United States. Critical minerals and materials are key to manufacturing clean energy technologies—such as solar panels, wind turbines, electric vehicles, and hydrogen fuel cells—that will help America reach the Biden-Harris Administration’s goal of net-zero emissions by 2050.
The United States currently imports greater than 80 percent of its rare earth elements from non-domestic suppliers. Similarly, in 2021 the United States imported more than half its consumption of at least 43 of the 50 mineral commodities critical to the U.S. economy and national security, with no domestic production of 14 of those commodities. Building a secure, sustainable domestic supply of critical minerals—including alternatives for critical materials that are not available in significant abundance in the United States—will reduce America’s dependence on other countries for these materials, create good-paying jobs, and support communities across the country that historically have depended on mining and energy production.
If issued, this funding opportunity announcement (FOA) will support bench- and pilot-scale research, development, and demonstration projects for:
- Technologies or process improvements along the domestic supply chain that develops new supplies of critical minerals and materials here at home;
- Value-added products created from other materials that are part of the waste streams from which critical minerals and materials are extracted;
- New, next-generation technologies to be used for lower cost, environmentally responsible extraction, production, separation, and processing of critical minerals and materials;
- Alternatives or substitutes for critical minerals and materials that do not occur in great abundance in the United States, but can be used as replacements in clean energy technologies; and
- New or improved alternative energy technologies or designs that use critical minerals and materials that are abundant in the United States.
To prepare for the release of this FOA, prospective applicants are encouraged to read the full NOI. DOE expects to issue the FOA during the third quarter of calendar year 2023.
In alignment with the President’s commitment that the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law create broadly shared economic prosperity across the United States, FOA applicants will be required to carefully consider impacts and benefits to workers and communities by emphasizing community and labor engagement, the creation of high-quality jobs, and avoiding the imposition of additional burdens on affected communities through implementation of the Justice40 initiative.
FECM minimizes environmental and climate impacts of fossil fuels and industrial processes while working to achieve net-zero emissions across our economy. Priority areas of technology work include carbon capture, carbon conversion, carbon dioxide removal, carbon dioxide transport and storage, hydrogen production with carbon management, methane emissions reduction, and critical minerals production. To learn more, visit the FECM website, sign up for FECM news announcements, and visit the National Energy Technology Laboratory website.
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