Funding Notice: Regional Scale Collaboration to Facilitate a Domestic Critical Minerals Future: Carbon Ore, Rare Earth, and Critical Minerals (CORE-CM) Initiative

Office: Resource Sustainability 
FOA number: DE-FOA-0003077 
Download the full funding opportunity: NETL eXCHANGE
Funding Amount: $60 million

Background Information 

On January 6, 2025, the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management (FECM) announced $45 million in federal funding for six projects to create regional consortia to accelerate the development of critical mineral and materials supply chains including novel nonfuel carbon-based products from secondary and unconventional feedstocks. Realizing the value of secondary and unconventional feedstocks, such as coal and coal by-products, effluent waters from oil and gas development, and acid mine drainage will enable the United States to rebuild domestic supply chains for critical minerals and materials. By focusing on abundant American secondary and unconventional sources, these investments will support dependable and enduring supplies for American manufacturing and production of technologies essential to clean energy and our nation’s defense. 

Selectees

Selected projects will build upon the work of DOE’s Carbon Ore, Rare Earth and Critical Minerals (CORE-CM) Initiative, expanding the focus from the basin scale to cover eight regions across the Nation. Teams consist of partners such as private industry; universities; local, state, and federal government; local communities; and Tribes and Tribal organizations who will develop and implement strategies that enable each U.S. region to realize its economic critical minerals and materials potential, including valuable non-fuel carbon-based products.

Selectees include:

• University of Alaska Fairbanks 
• University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign 
• University of Texas at Austin 
• University of Utah 
• University of Wyoming 
• Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

A detailed list of the selected projects can be found here.

Key Dates

Additional Information

• Download the full funding opportunity on NETL eXCHANGE.
• All applicants must register through the NETL eXCHANGE. Questions about this FOA must be emailed to [email protected].