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(66) stories found containing 'texas mineral resources'


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  • The U.S. Capitol dome lit by orange sunrise with flag at half-staff.

    U.S. bill opens door to global mapping

    A.J. Roan, Metal Tech News|Updated Jun 24, 2025

    Finding ORE Act would link USGS with allied nations to map minerals. In a bid to strengthen mineral security and reduce foreign dependence, U.S. lawmakers have introduced a bipartisan bill that would authorize the U.S. Geological Survey to partner with allied nations on global mineral mapping – a foundational step to expand U.S. access to critical resources and challenge China's global supply grip. As global demand for critical minerals accelerates, the U.S. is working to s...

  • Asian frieze cluttered with treasures, with dragon presenting a golden battery.

    China mineral bans hurt Western production

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Jun 24, 2025

    Export restrictions have already begun to affect U.S. and EU, with automotive part manufacturers making hard decisions to halt production. In April 2025, China imposed sweeping restrictions on the export of rare earth minerals and magnets, targeting sectors critical to Western economies in retaliation for renewed U.S. tariffs. Although some tariffs were later paused, China's restrictions have remained firmly in place, and the effects are being felt by automotive manufacturers...

  • A chess board with the Chinese flag on one side and U.S. flag on the other.

    China's heavy rare earths tariff gambit

    Shane Lasley, Metal Tech News|Updated Apr 17, 2025

    Restricts exports of rare earths critical to defense and high-tech. China responded to President Trump's "Liberation Day" tariffs with 34% tariffs on imports from the United States plus restrictions on the exports of a group of seven rare earth elements vital to aerospace, auto manufacturing, nuclear energy, and advanced weapons systems. "This is a precision strike by China against Pentagon supply chains that enable our most powerful weapons and defense systems, from stealth...

  • Pile of shredded electronics with E-SCRAP competition logo and title overlay.

    DOE awards phase 1 winners of E-SCRAP

    A.J. Roan, Metal Tech News|Updated Mar 14, 2025

    Ten teams recognized for groundbreaking solutions to reclaim critical materials. With potential billions of dollars in critical materials lost in discarded electronics each year, the U.S. Department of Energy has announced the first winners of its $4 million E-SCRAP competition, recognizing innovations that transform e-waste into a valuable resource for supply chains and sustainability. First announced in March, DOE saw the immense potential of recovering valuable and...

  • A man in USA Rare Earth hardhat with small magnet in palm of hand.

    OK facility produces rare earth magnets

    Shane Lasley, Metal Tech News|Updated Feb 27, 2025

    USA Rare Earths produces first batch of critical REE magnets at its Innovations Lab in Stillwater, Oklahoma. Crossing a major milestone on the path to breaking America's reliance on China for an essential component of electric vehicles, wind turbines, robotics and military technologies, USA Rare Earth LLC (USARE) has produced its first batch of rare earth magnets at its Innovations Lab in Oklahoma. "Our new Innovations Lab, which we will finish building out in the coming month...

  • Critical minerals and carbon materials from coal flow chart with recycling.

    DOE expands US critical minerals program

    Shane Lasley, Metal Tech News|Updated Feb 27, 2025

    Invests $45 million for regional Carbon Ore, Rare Earth and Critical Minerals (CORE-CM) assessment across the nation. To help break America's reliance on imports for many of the minerals critical to the nation's economy and security, the U.S. Department of Energy is investing $45 million into six regional projects from Alaska and the Pacific Northwest to the Appalachian Mountain region near the Atlantic coast. "Rebuilding a domestic supply chain for critical minerals and...

  • Tablet with Metal Tech News webpage open and the words Top 10 stories 2024.

    Top 10 Metal Tech News articles of 2024

    Shane Lasley, Metal Tech News|Updated Dec 31, 2024

    From space tech-enabled copper exploration in Australia to nuclear fuel made in America, MTN counts down the most popular articles of 2024. Over the past year, Metal Tech News writers delivered more than 500 articles with deep insights into the scientific breakthroughs, mining initiatives, government policies, and market conditions that are shaping the future for technology metals and mining technologies. These articles took readers from material science discoveries in the... Full story

  • Hands cupping ash over a background of coal.

    Ash to treasure: REEs found in coal waste

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Dec 5, 2024

    Coal ash waste stream might become feedstock for extracting much-needed domestic rare earth elements. The U.S. has relied almost entirely on imports for its supply of rare earth elements (REEs) – nearly 75% of which comes from China, whose geopolitical tensions with the West have put several critical mineral supply chains onto shaky ground. Meanwhile, at a special landfill in Shrewsbury, Massachusetts, researchers have discovered massive potential for this suite of elements h...

  • Flags of France, Italy, Canada, Japan, UK, Germany, U.S. in a row.

    US, Allies seek critical mineral standards

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Dec 5, 2024

    With ambitious technological and financial cooperation, Western allies could produce enough critical minerals to meet climate goals. In the aftermath of the COVID pandemic, nations quickly discovered the perils of an uneven distribution of production and processing capabilities in the guise of globalization. Phrases like "near-shoring" and "friend-shoring" led discussions of a green economy as remedies to the trade imbalance between the United States and the People's Republic...

  • Arkansas oil well sits idle surrounded by pine trees and blue sky.

    An Arkansas lithium royalty battle brews

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Dec 5, 2024

    Tapping the massive underground resource will hinge on landowner royalty agreement. The promise of lithium beneath Arkansas and five neighboring states cannot be overstated. Arkansas' little corner of the Smackover Formation – a massive permeable limestone geological extending from Florida to Texas – was estimated earlier this month by the U.S. Geological Survey to host between five and 19 million tons of lithium reserves. With such a massive lithium discovery and big names ea...

  • Closeup of columns filled with colorful liquids for rare earths extraction.

    Making rare earths separation less rare

    Shane Lasley, Data Mine North|Updated Oct 2, 2024

    Separation and processing are the master link of US supply chain. From tech devices such as smartphones and computer monitors to clean energy products like electric vehicles and wind turbines, household goods like vacuum cleaners and refrigerators, and military hardware such as F-35 fighters and communications equipment, rare earths have a critical role to play in nearly every facet of America's economy and security. The United States, however, currently relies on China for ne...

  • Soldering iron applying tin to a circuit board for electrical connections.

    A quiet element that sustains modern tech

    A.J. Roan, Data Mine North|Updated Sep 26, 2024

    Tin is indispensable today and shapes innovation of tomorrow. From $5 flashlightS to multi-million-dollar super computers, virtually all electronics rely on tin, primarily because of its use in soldering. If circuit boards are considered the backbone of technology, then tin-based solder could be seen as the connective tissue that holds the industry together. Despite its fundamental role in the Digital Age, tin is often overshadowed by other critical minerals and contends with...

  • AI-generated image of a pistol frame and various military munitions.

    North America fortifies scandium supply

    A.J. Roan, Data Mine North|Updated Sep 26, 2024

    Projects, initiatives, and technology expand scandium supply chain security. While it may not have quite as strong a chemical bond to its adopted lanthanide siblings as they do each other, scandium does possess similar enough characteristics and is almost always found at the same geological gatherings (deposits) as the rest of its rare earth family. Named for the Latin word for Scandinavia, "Scandia," – as the mineral was thought to only dwell off the Nordic peninsula – sca...

  • Front of the White House on a spring day in Washington, DC.

    Unlocking America's critical minerals

    Shane Lasley, Data Mine North|Updated Sep 16, 2024

    An all-of-government strategy is beginning to unfold in the US. Over the first two years following the passage of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act, the U.S. Department of Energy has invested billions of dollars into establishing a clean energy supply chain in the United States. These heavy investments, however, have neglected one vital link – the domestic mines needed to supply the processing facilities, battery plants, and other energy t... Full story

  • Fully equipped army soldier enters area with smoke and fire at night.

    DOD invests in mission-critical minerals

    Shane Lasley, Data Mine North|Updated Sep 15, 2024

    Import-reliance a top concern for national security officials. America's heavy reliance on China and others for the minerals and metals critical to the nation's economic competitiveness, military strength, and clean energy future is high on the list of strategic concerns for top brass at the U.S. departments of Defense and Homeland Security. While much of this concern is rooted in the fact that the United States' ability to defend its strategic interests at home and abroad... Full story

  • Image of the various erosion marks found within the Grand Canyon.

    Battle over mining near the Grand Canyon

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Aug 13, 2024

    Decades-long clash continues over Colorado's uranium mines with implications for economy and national security. Mining near the Grand Canyon has been an embattled topic for decades, with an outcome that has implications for American jobs, the future of green energy, the economy, and national security. Uranium fuels nuclear power, a sustainable, efficient, plentiful and practically carbon-free energy. Miners like Colorado-based Energy Fuels Resources Inc. and the current...

  • Computer grapic of charger being plugged into EV on a photo of wind turbines.

    DOE puts $75M into domestic minerals

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Jul 11, 2024

    U.S. Department of Energy is funding a Critical Materials Supply Chain Research Facility support a resilient and secure domestic supply chain. The Department of Energy is funding a Critical Materials Supply Chain Research Facility that will help support a secure domestic supply of minerals and materials critical to economic prosperity, national security, and the green energy transition in the U.S. This week, the DOE's Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management (FECM)...

  • Aerial view of phosphor-gypsum stacks at the Phalaborwa project.

    Billions in rare earths for U.S. at risk

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated May 24, 2024

    Without investors, the future of South Africa's rare earth elements enriched Phalaborwa site may depend on Washington support. Bordering South Africa's renowned Kruger National Park stands Phalaborwa, a mine sporting two rare earths-enriched phospho-gypsum waste piles that could mean over a billion in critical minerals for the U.S. – if the project can get enough support to run. To challenge China's near monopoly on rare earths, Washington has committed funds to a little-known... Full story

  • University of Arizona campus that features 20 colleges.

    Arizona paves streets of copper for U.S.

    A.J. Roan, Metal Tech News|Updated May 13, 2024

    University convened with key leaders across government, industry, and academia on Capitol Hill to discuss sustainable production and cultivating the next generation of miners. In a pivotal move to safeguard the U.S. critical mineral supply chain, the University of Arizona has taken center stage in pioneering sustainable mining practices, nurturing a skilled domestic workforce, and powering the national transition to renewable energy and next-gen defense technology at an event... Full story

  • Lana Alagha conducting an experiment at Missouri S&T.

    Missouri S&T innovates minerals recovery

    A.J. Roan, Metal Tech News|Updated Apr 23, 2024

    Researcher Lana Alagha received $875,000 from Rio Tinto to explore gallium and germanium recovery from copper waste streams. In a landmark development for critical minerals recovery, global mining company Rio Tinto has granted Missouri University of Science and Technology professor Lana Alagha $875,000 for a two-year project that seeks to pioneer novel techniques for extracting the highly sought after critical minerals gallium and germanium from waste generated in copper... Full story

  • A pile of bluish silver lead bars stamped with “Doe Run.”

    DOD invests in Missouri battery metals

    Shane Lasley, Metal Tech News|Updated Apr 2, 2024

    Pentagon awards Doe Run $7 million to help scale up a cobalt and nickel processing plant in The Show-Me State. As part of a larger objective to ensure the United States has reliable domestic supplies of the minerals and metals critical to the nation's economy and security, the U.S. Department of Defense has awarded The Doe Run Resources Corp. $7 million to complete a demonstration-scale hydrometallurgical plant for separation of cobalt and nickel at their facility in...

  • Rendering of blue and orange grid sandwiching carbon molecules.

    Geothermal for cheap U.S. CO2 capture

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Mar 13, 2024

    Combining carbon-free energy with permanent storage of CO2 creates a more cost-effective self-sustaining loop. A research team at Ohio State University (OSU) has proposed the combination of carbon capture with geothermal energy in a cheap, novel method that could make capturing carbon dioxide from the air a viable option. Their system recycles some of the captured CO2 to transport geothermal energy in a closed loop that can make large-scale direct air capture cheaper and more...

  • Piles of black, white, grey, and yellow rare earth oxide powders.

    USA Rare Earth secures magnet feedstock

    Shane Lasley, Metal Tech News|Updated Mar 12, 2024

    Enters into agreement with ReElement for a domestic supply of rare earths for its magnet plant in Oklahoma. In a move that will begin to establish a circular and domestic supply chain for the powerful magnets used in electric vehicle motors, USA Rare Earth LLC has signed a deal to buy ultra-pure rare earth elements (REE) produced from ReElement Technologies Corp.'s state-of-the-art rare earths and battery metals refining facility in Indiana. "We are thrilled to be working...

  • A large pile of raw, unused bituminous coal ores.

    DOE funds more REE from coal research

    A.J. Roan, Metal Tech News|Updated Mar 6, 2024

    Three projects that will advance coal-derived rare earths and critical minerals. Further attempting to strengthen America's critical mineral supply chain and by proxy its national security, the U.S. Department of Energy announced $17 million in funding for three projects focused on establishing a domestic supply of rare earth elements and critical minerals from coal-based resources. Funded through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law as part of President Biden's Investing in...

  • Fully equipped army soldier enters area with smoke and fire at night.

    Pentagon prioritizes critical minerals

    Shane Lasley, Metal Tech News|Updated Jan 28, 2024

    Reshoring mineral supply chains lost to globalization is a key part of DOD National Defense Industrial Strategy The urgency to onshore critical mineral supply chains in the United States has begun to shift away from a need to secure reliable sources of the minerals and metals needed to support the nation's economy and clean energy ambitions toward the need for these same mined commodities to defend American ideals and interests at home and abroad. "Establishing a fully...

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