The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), through the Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management and administered by the National Energy Technology Laboratory, has released a funding opportunity titled "Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act - Mines & Metals Capacity Expansion – Piloting Byproduct Critical Minerals and Materials Recovery at Domestic Industrial Facilities." This initiative, supported by appropriations under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), seeks to accelerate the domestic production of critical minerals through pilot-scale demonstrations at industrial facilities. The effort directly supports national priorities around energy security, economic resilience, and the development of domestic supply chains for rare and critical materials.
The program is focused on piloting recovery technologies for critical materials produced as byproducts of existing industrial processes. Many critical materials vital for clean energy and defense applications—such as gallium, indium, and rare earth elements—are imported or discarded during conventional processing. This FOA targets facilities in sectors such as mining, mineral processing, power generation, oil and gas, and specialty metals to deploy large-scale pilot systems capable of recovering such byproducts from industrial feedstocks and waste streams. Successful projects must operate semi-continuously or continuously and meet commercial purity specifications.
Two topic areas are included: Topic Area 1 targets coal-based industries for rare earth recovery; Topic Area 2 encompasses all industries and is further subdivided into efforts building from bench-scale and prior pilot-scale work. The minimum Technology Readiness Level (TRL) requirements range from TRL 4 to TRL 7, depending on the subtopic. All applicants must submit detailed technical and commercialization plans, including data sheets, facility design proposals, and verification strategies. Applicants must demonstrate feedstock availability for at least five years and quantify the impact of their project on reducing foreign import reliance.
Applications require a minimum 20% non-federal cost share. Awards will be structured as cooperative agreements, with DOE exercising substantial involvement in project execution, including milestone evaluations and go/no-go decision points at each of the four budget periods. The anticipated award duration is up to four years, and projects are expected to begin by mid-2026. Awardees must also participate in the DOE Critical Materials Collaborative, which facilitates interagency coordination, annual symposia, and knowledge sharing.
Applications are due by January 15, 2026, at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time. The application process is managed through DOE’s eXCHANGE portal. Required registrations include SAM.gov, Grants.gov, and eXCHANGE. Selected applicants will be notified by January 16, 2026, with conditional awards anticipated by February 23, 2026, and full awards by June 15, 2026. All project work must be conducted within the United States, and the use of foreign entities or foreign work requires special waivers.
Highlight above-minimum cost share; demonstrate feedstock reliability and TRL progression; ensure clear purity/scale targets.
