DE-FOA-0003583_11.14.25 (1).pdf

Financial Assistance Notice of Funding Opportunity

Part 1

Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management

Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) – Mines & Metals Capacity Expansion – Piloting Byproduct Critical Minerals and Materials Recovery at Domestic Industrial Facilities

Notice of Funding Opportunity Number: DE-FOA-0003583

Application due: December 15, 2025 5:00 pm EST

Table of Contents

BEFORE YOU BEGIN

Navigating the Notice of Funding Opportunity

I. BASIC INFORMATION

A. Key Facts

1. Funding Details

2. Period of Performance

B. Executive Summary C. Agency Contact Information

II. ELIGIBILITY

D. Eligible Applicants

1. Domestic Entities

2. Foreign Entity Participation

E. Limitation on Number of Applications Eligible for Review F. Cost Sharing

1. Cost Share Requirements

2. Unallowable Cost Share Sources

G. FFRDC Eligibility Criteria

1. DOE and Non-DOE FFRDCs as a Subrecipient

III. PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

A. Background and Context B. Program Purpose C. Program Goals and Objectives D. Expected Performance Goals E. Teaming Partner List F. Coordination With Other DOE Activities G. Topic Areas

1. Information and Requirements for both Topic Areas

2. Information and Requirements for Topic Area 1: Mines & Metals Pilots—Coal-Based Industry

3. Information and Requirements for Topic Area 2: Mines & Metals Pilots—All Industries

H. Applications Specifically Not of Interest I. Statement of Substantial Involvement J. Statutory Authority

IV. APPLICATION CONTENT AND FORM

A. Information Sharing B. Summary C. Application Content Requirements

1. Covered Individual Definition, Designation, and Responsibility

2. Summary of Application Requirements

3. Technical Volume

4. Biographical Sketch

5. Current and Pending (Other) Support

6. Statement of Project Objectives

7. Project Management Plan

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8. Photographs of Existing Systems/Circuits

9. Technology Commercialization Plan

10. Feedstock and Critical Material Production Data Sheet

11. Project Summary Data Sheet

12. Letter(s) of Support, if applicable

13. Feasibility Study, if applicable

14. Summary of Post Selection Requirements (Not Due with Application)

D. Funding Restrictions

1. Buy America Requirement Preference for Infrastructure Projects

V. SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS AND DEADLINES

A. Required Registrations

1. Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) and System for Award Management (SAM)

2. eXCHANGE

3. Grants.gov Registration

B. Application Package

1. eXCHANGE

C. Submission Date and Times D. Intergovernmental Review

VI. APPLICATION REVIEW INFORMATION

A. Standards for Application Evaluation B. Responsiveness Review C. Review Criteria

1. Compliance Criteria

2. Technical Review Criteria

D. Other Selection Factors

VII. SELECTION AND AWARD NOTICES

VIII. AWARD ADMINISTRATION INFORMATION

A. Post-Award Requirements and Administration

1. Real Property and Equipment

2. Cybersecurity Plan

3. Rights in Technical Data

4. Cost Share Payment

5. Energy Data eXchange (EDX) Requirements

B. Helpful Websites C. Questions and Support

1. Questions

2. Support

IX. OTHER INFORMATION

X. LIST OF ACRONYMS

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Before You Begin

Navigating the Notice of Funding Opportunity To reduce the burden on applicants in the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) process and limit the length of the NOFO information requests DOE has separated the NOFO into two parts.

The NOFO Part 1 describes the specific DOE programmatic goals and evaluation criteria, eligibility, and other components that are specific to each funding opportunity. The NOFO Part 2 includes the fixed DOE requirements that generally do not change from NOFO to NOFO, including standard information for the application phase, expectations for award negotiations, and post-award requirements. Applicants must review both the NOFO Part 1 and the NOFO Part 2 prior to applying. To facilitate navigation, you will find links throughout this document to additional information found in Part 2.

There are several required one-time actions applicants must take before applying to this NOFO. Some of these actions may take several weeks, so it is vital applicants build in enough time to complete them.

Failure to complete these actions could interfere with application or negotiation deadlines or the ability to receive an award if selected. If you have previously completed the necessary registrations, make sure your registration is active and up to date. All registrations are free. Please refer to NOFO Part 2, Get Registered, for additional information.

This announcement is published in conjunction with NOFO Part 2 Version 2.1.

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I. Basic Information

A. Key Facts

Issuing Agency

Department of Energy, Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management (FECM), National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL)

Funding Opportunity Title

Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) - Mines & Metals Capacity Expansion – Piloting Byproduct Critical Minerals and Materials Recovery at Domestic Industrial Facilities

Announcement Type Initial announcement

Funding Opportunity Number

DE-FOA-0003583

Funding Instrument Cooperative Agreements

Assistance Listing Number

81.089 Fossil Energy Research and Development

Funding Opportunity Description

The focus of this NOFO is to invest in American industrial facilities that have the potential to produce valuable critical material byproducts from existing industrial processes. Industries such as mining and mineral processing, power generation, coal, oil and gas, specialty metals, and basic materials have the potential to address many of America’s most severe mineral vulnerabilities.

Program Goals & Objective(s)

This NOFO will solicit applications to derisk the technical uncertainty and financial risk for commercial deployment of critical materials byproduct recovery technologies through large pilot-scale production under real-world conditions.

Topic Areas (TA)

Topic Area 1: Mines & Metals Pilots—Coal-Based Industry Topic Area 2: Mines & Metals Pilots—All Industries

Eligible Applicants Domestic entities (institutes of higher education; for-profit entities;

non-profit entities; state and local government entities and Indian Tribes) eXCHANGE URL and Helpdesk https://netl-exchange.energy.gov/ NETL-ExchangeSupport@hq.doe.gov

KEY DATES

Notice of Funding Opportunity Issue Date:

November 14, Application Deadline:

December 15, Anticipated Selection Notification Date:

January 16, 2026

Anticipated Conditional Award Date:

January 23, 2026

Anticipated Award Date:

June 15, 2026

Estimated Period of Performance:

June 15, 2026 – June 14, 2030

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1. Funding Details Multiple Topic Areas Approximate total available funding including all topic areas: up to $275,000,000 from fiscal year (FY) 2024-2026 funds [IIJA Sec. 41003(b)-(c)].

Topic Area 1: Mines & Metals Pilots—Coal-Based Industry

• Approximate total available funding: up to $75,000,000 total in FY 2024, FY 2025, and FY 2026

• Approximate number of awards: 0-3

• Approximate dollar amount of individual awards: $10,000,000-$50,000,000

• Minimum cost share required: 20% of the total project costs

• Approximate award project period: 48 months

• Anticipated length of budget periods: 12-24 months

Topic Area 2: Mines & Metals Pilots—All Industries

• Approximate total available funding: up to $200,000,000 total in FY 2024 and FY 2025

• Approximate number of awards: 0-10

• Approximate dollar amount of individual awards: $10,000,000-$75,000,000

• Minimum cost share required: 20% of the total project costs

• Approximate award project period: up to 48 months

• Anticipated length of budget periods: 12-24 months

2. Period of Performance

DOE anticipates making awards comprised of multiple budget periods. Project continuation will be contingent upon DOE’s Go/No-Go decision. For a complete list and more information on the Go/No-Go review, see the NOFO Part 2, Award Administration Information. Funding for all budget periods, including the initial budget period, is not guaranteed.

Given the distinct nature of the requested activities to include the development of a proving ground facility and the subsequent execution of technology testing at these grounds, multiple budget periods are necessary. The primary focus and a significant portion of the effort will be dedicated to the development of the proving ground facility. To facilitate more effective go/no-go decision points, it is intended that this development phase span multiple budget periods. Applicants are encouraged to propose and recommend the logical budget period breaks, as these points may vary considerably depending on the specific application.

B. Executive Summary The Department of Energy’s Critical Materials List1 is defined by statute and includes all of the critical minerals on the Department of Interior List (which includes Rare Earth Elements), and additional materials the Secretary of Energy determines (i) has a high risk of supply chain disruption; and (ii) serves an essential function in one or more energy technologies, including technologies that produce, transmit, store, and conserve energy.

Many of America’s most needed critical materials are primarily produced as byproducts of mineral production operations. For example, cobalt, a critical component in lithium-ion batteries, is a byproduct

1 https://www.energy.gov/cmm/what-are-critical-materials-and-critical-minerals https://www.energy.gov/cmm/what-are-critical-materials-and-critical-minerals

Version 2.0 Page 7 of 54 of copper and nickel mining; indium, a critical semiconductor material, is commonly recovered during the processing of zinc ores. Mineral processing facilities that do not recover valuable byproducts allow these byproducts to deport to tailings facilities where the potential byproduct materials remain in mine waste. Other byproduct mineral production technologies have the potential to expand domestic mineral production from non-ore processing industries. For example, rare earth elements (REE), essential for today’s magnet industry, could be recovered from industrial processes, like power generation, clay production, and fertilizer production waste streams. However, many of the technologies for byproduct recovery need to undergo pilot-scale testing at an industrial facility where actual industrial feedstocks can be processed in real-world conditions to reduce the technical uncertainty and financial risk for future commercial deployment.

This NOFO addresses the technology development for U.S. production of byproduct critical materials from coal-based and other industrial streams, including mine waste and other waste streams, to accelerate commercial domestic mineral production.

C. Agency Contact Information Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management U.S. Department of Energy 1000 Independence Ave SW Washington, D.C. 20585

For questions relating to this specific NOFO, please send emails to DE-FOA-0003583@netl.doe.gov.

mailto:DE-FOA-0003583@netl.doe.gov

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II. Eligibility

To be considered for substantive evaluation, an applicant’s submission must meet the criteria set forth below. If the application does not meet these eligibility requirements, it will be considered ineligible and removed from further evaluation and ineligible for any award. DOE will not make eligibility determinations for potential applicants prior to the date on which applications to this NOFO must be submitted. The decision whether to apply in response to this NOFO lies solely with the applicant. The information included here is specific to eligibility requirements for this NOFO. For eligibility requirements applicable to all NOFOs, please consult the NOFO Part 2, Eligibility.

D. Eligible Applicants To be considered for substantive evaluation, an applicant’s submission must meet the criteria set forth below. If the application does not meet these eligibility requirements, it will be considered ineligible and removed from further evaluation.

1. Domestic Entities Domestic entities are eligible to apply as recipients or subrecipients. The following types of domestic entities are eligible to participate as a recipient or subrecipient of this NOFO (See Title 20 U.S.C. § 1001 for the definition):

• Institutions of higher education;

• For-profit organization;

• Nonprofit organization;

• State and local governmental entities; and

• Indian Tribes, as defined in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance

Act, 25 U.S.C. § 53042

To qualify as a domestic entity, the entity must be organized, chartered, or incorporated (or otherwise formed) under the laws of a particular state or territory of the United States or under the laws of the United States; have majority domestic ownership and control; and have a physical place of business in the United States.

Participant Limitations Participation of the following entities are limited as follows.

• DOE FFRDCs are eligible to apply for funding as a subrecipient but are not eligible to apply as a recipient.

• Non-DOE FFRDCs are eligible to participate as a subrecipient but are not eligible to apply as a recipient.

• Federal agencies and instrumentalities (other than DOE) are eligible to participate as a subrecipient but are typically not eligible to apply as a recipient.

2 “Indian Tribe,” for the purposes of this NOFO and as defined in in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. § 5304), means any Indian tribe, band, nation, or other organized group or community, including any Alaska Native village or regional or village corporation as defined in or established pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (85 Stat. 688) [43 U.S.C. § 1601, et seq.], which is recognized as eligible for the special programs and services provided by the United States to Indians because of their status as Indians

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• NETL is not eligible for award under this announcement and may not be proposed as a subrecipient on another entity’s application. An application that includes NETL as a recipient or subrecipient will be considered non-responsive.

2. Foreign Entity Participation

In general, foreign entities are not eligible to apply as either a recipient or subrecipient. In limited circumstances, DOE may approve a waiver to allow a foreign entity to participate as a recipient or subrecipient.

A foreign entity may submit an application to this NOFO, but the application must be accompanied by an explicit written waiver request. Likewise, if the applicant seeks to include a foreign entity as a subrecipient, the applicant must submit a separate explicit written waiver request in the application for each proposed foreign subrecipient. Please see NOFO Part 2, Application Content Requirements for the requirements for submission of a foreign entity waiver request. The applicant does not have the right to appeal DOE’s decision concerning a waiver request.

Prime recipients and subrecipients must be legally formed in the United States, have majority domestic ownership and control, and have a physical location for business operations in the United States.

The National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) and NETL Research and Innovation Center (RIC) are not eligible for award under this announcement and may not be proposed as a subrecipient on another entity’s application. An application that includes NETL or NETL RIC as a recipient or subrecipient will be considered non-responsive.

Performance of Work in the United States All work for the awards under this NOFO must be performed in the United States. To request a waiver of this requirement, the applicant must submit an explicit waiver request in the application. Absent an approved waiver, such costs will not be allowable under the award. The NOFO Part 2, Application Content Requirements lists the requirements for submission of a foreign work waiver request.

Ineligible Participants The following entities are ineligible for participation in this NOFO as a recipient, subrecipient, or subcontractor.

• Federal agencies and instrumentalities are not eligible to participate as a subrecipient or recipient.

• In accordance with 2 CFR 200.214, entities banned from doing business with the U.S.

government such as entities debarred, suspended, or otherwise excluded from or ineligible for participating in federal programs.

• Entities identified on Department of the Treasury Office of Foreign Assets Control Treasury’s Sanctions Program Specially Designated Nationals list are prohibited from doing business with the United States government and are not eligible. See OFAC - Sanctions List Service (treas.gov).

• Nonprofit organizations described in Section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 that engaged in lobbying activities after December 31, 1995, are not eligible to apply for funding.

https://sanctionslist.ofac.treas.gov/Home/SdnList

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Entity of Concern Prohibition Entities of Concern are prohibited from participating in projects selected under this NOFO (see NOFO Part 2, Eligibility, Other Eligibility Information, Entity of Concern Prohibition section for details and definitions).

E. Limitation on Number of Applications Eligible for Review An entity may submit more than one application to this NOFO if each describes a unique, scientifically distinct project concept.

Applicants may not submit identical applications for multiple topic (or subtopic) areas.

F. Cost Sharing Applicants are expected to follow through on estimated cost share commitments proposed in their applications if selected for award negotiations. Please refer to the NOFO Part 2, Eligibility for more information on Cost Sharing.

1. Cost Share Requirements The minimum cost share is 20% of the total project costs3 for large pilot-scale research and development.4

Applications that do not meet the minimum required cost share will be deemed ineligible during the initial compliance review and will not be further reviewed. The cost share must come from non-federal sources unless otherwise allowed by law.

The cost share percentage is calculated by dividing the cost share by the total allowable project costs for the award where the total allowable project costs include government share (including FFRDC costs if applicable) and cost share. To help applicants calculate proper cost share amounts, DOE has included a cost share information sheet and sample cost share calculation in the NOFO Part 2, Eligibility—Cost Sharing, Cost Share Calculation Examples.

2. Unallowable Cost Share Sources Refer to NOFO Part 2, Eligibility—Cost Sharing, Unallowable Cost Share Sources for unallowable cost share sources applicable to all NOFOs.

G. FFRDC Eligibility Criteria

1. DOE and Non-DOE FFRDCs as a Subrecipient

As long as they have no conflict, DOE and non-DOE FFRDCs may be proposed as a subrecipient on another entity’s application subject to the following guidelines:

3 Total project costs are the sum of the government share, including FFRDC costs if applicable, and the recipient share of project costs.

4 Energy Policy Act of 2005, Pub. L. 109-58, sec. 988. Also see 2 CFR 200.306 and 2 CFR 910.130 for additional cost sharing requirements.

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Authorization for non-DOE FFRDCs The federal agency sponsoring the FFRDC must authorize in writing the use of the FFRDC on the proposed project and this authorization must be submitted with the application. The use of a FFRDC must be consistent with its authority under its award.

Authorization for DOE FFRDCs The cognizant Contracting Officer for the FFRDC must authorize in writing the use of the FFRDC on the proposed project and this authorization must be submitted with the application. The following wording is acceptable for this authorization:

Authorization is granted for the Laboratory to participate in the proposed project. The work proposed for the Laboratory is consistent with or complementary to the missions of the Laboratory and will not adversely impact execution of the DOE assigned programs at the Laboratory.

Funding, Cost Share, and Subaward with FFRDCs The recipient and FFRDC are responsible for entering into an appropriate subaward that will govern, among other things, the funding of the FFRDC portion of the work from the recipient under its DOE award. Such an agreement must be fully executed prior to the FFRDC starting work directly allocable to the financial assistance award. The DOE funding office will provide funding for the DOE FFRDC or non- DOE FFRDC, participating as a sub awardee under the DOE financial assistance award to the recipient.

The applicant should prepare the budgets using rates appropriate for funding the FFRDCs through subawards. The applicant’s cost share requirement will be based on the total cost of the project, including the applicant’s, the subrecipient’s, and the FFRDC’s portions of the project.

Responsibility The recipient will be the responsible authority regarding the settlement and satisfaction of all contractual and administrative issues, including but not limited to disputes and claims arising out of any agreement between the recipient and the FFRDC.

Limit on FFRDC Effort The FFRDC effort, in aggregate, shall not exceed 25% of the total project cost.3

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III. Program Description

A. Background and Context The Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management is issuing this NOFO. Awards made under this NOFO will be funded with up to $275 million of appropriated IIJA Section 410035 funds. IIJA Sections 41003(b) Rare Earth Mineral Security and (c) Critical Material Innovation, Efficiency, and Alternatives have appropriations of approximately $727 million for the five-year period encompassing FY 2022 through 2026. Specifically, IIJA Section 41003(b) authorizes appropriations to carry out activities under Section 7001(a) of the Energy Act of 2020 (42 U.S.C. 13344(a)) and IIJA Section 41003(c) authorizes appropriations to carry out activities under Section 7002(g) of the Energy Act of 2020 (30 U.S.C.

1606(g)).6

The activities to be funded under this NOFO support Sections 7001(a) and 7002(g) of the Energy Act of 2020, as funded by IIJA Sections 41003(b) and (c), as well as the broader government-wide approach to advance and potentially commercialize technology developed through the design, construction, and/or operation of large pilot-scale facilities that produce critical minerals and materials (CMM) for our Nation’s energy, national security, and domestic industry needs. These provisions are focused on:

• Rare Earth Mineral Security (42 U.S.C. 13344(a)) o Developing and accessing advanced separation technologies for the extraction and recovery of other critical materials from coal and coal byproducts.

o Determining if there are, and mitigate, any potential environmental or public health impacts that could arise from the recovery of REE from coal-based resources.

• Critical Material Innovation, Efficiency, and Alternatives (30 U.S.C. 1606(g)) o Developing alternatives to critical materials that do not occur in significant abundance in the United States.

o Promoting the efficient production, use, and recycling of critical materials, with special consideration for domestic critical materials, throughout the supply chain.

o Ensuring the long-term, secure, and sustainable supply of critical materials.

o Prioritizing work in areas that the private sector by itself is not likely to undertake due to financial or technical limitations.

B. Program Purpose The U.S. is nearly 100% dependent on imports of industrial byproduct metals like gallium, germanium, indium, antimony, and bismuth. Each of these byproduct materials are vulnerable because the U.S.

private sector has not had a durable profit motive to invest in their recovery. Recently implemented

5 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, Pub. L. 117-58, div. D, title X, § 41003(b)-(c), Nov. 15, 2021, https://www.congress.gov/117/plaws/publ58/PLAW-117publ58.pdf.

6 Energy Act of 2020, Pub. L. 116-260, div. Z, title VII, §§ 7001(a) and 7002(g), Dec. 27, 2020, as amended, https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/PLAW-116publ260/pdf/PLAW-116publ260.pdf.

https://www.congress.gov/117/plaws/publ58/PLAW-117publ58.pdf https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/PLAW-116publ260/pdf/PLAW-116publ260.pdf

Version 2.0 Page 13 of 54 export restrictions on all of these and other critical materials7,8,9,10,11 are impacting global supply chains, triggering price volatility, and increasing the urgency of DOE action.

It is estimated that the United States imports greater than 80% of its rare earth elements from non-domestic suppliers, and domestic industrial and defense sectors are entirely reliant on China for more than 25% of our critical minerals.12 Recent accounting of critical mineral flows13 indicates that the U.S.

continues to lose market share to other countries.

In 2025, recognizing the need to secure America’s critical material supply chain, President Donald Trump included “critical minerals” in the definition of Executive Order (EO) 14156, Declaring a National Energy Emergency,14 which highlighted the role critical materials (which includes critical minerals) play in all parts of the U.S. energy system, including hydrocarbon energy production, refining, and other industries.

President Trump also released EO 14241, Immediate Measures to Increase American Mineral Production,15 which highlights the need to immediately increase domestic mineral production.

The current funding opportunity, NOFO DE-FOA-0003583, aims to leverage ongoing American industrial activity to recover valuable critical material byproducts from coal-based and other industrial feedstocks.

This NOFO will support technology development within industries such as mining and mineral processing, power generation, coal, oil and gas, specialty metals, and basic materials. These industries have the potential to address many of America’s most severe material vulnerabilities by producing valuable byproduct minerals. This NOFO will enable pilot-scale production at U.S. industrial facilities accelerating the commercial scale production of affordable, reliable, and secure domestic mineral resources as byproducts of ongoing profitable industrial operations.

7 International Energy Agency, Announcement on the Implementation of Export Control of Items Related to Gallium and Germanium (2023), https://www.iea.org/policies/17893-announcement-on-the-implementation-of-export-control-of-items-related-to-gallium-and-germanium.

8 International Energy Agency, Catalogue of Commodities subject to the Administration of Export Licenses (2023), https://www.iea.org/policies/17894-catalogue-of-commodities-subject-to-the-administration-of-export-licences.

9 International Energy Agency, Decision to implement export controls on tungsten, tellurium, bismuth, molybdenum and indium related items (2025), https://www.iea.org/policies/26795-decision-to-implement-export-controls-on-tungsten-tellurium-bismuth-molybdenum-and-indium-related-items.

10 International Energy Agency, Strengthening the Export Control of Relevant Dual-Use Items to the United States (2025), https://www.iea.org/policies/26794-strengthening-the-export-control-of-relevant-dual-use-items-to-the-united-states.

11 International Energy Agency, Export controls on certain medium and heavy rare earth items (2025), https://www.iea.org/policies/26796-export-controls-on-certain-medium-and-heavy-rare-earth-items.

12 Critical material is defined in 30 U.S.C. § 1606(a)(2) as (A) any non-fuel mineral, element, substance, or material that the Secretary of Energy determines- (i) has a high risk of a supply chain disruption; and (ii) serves an essential function in 1 or more energy technologies, including technologies that produce, transmit, store, and conserve energy; or (B) a critical mineral. See also https://www.energy.gov/cmm/what-are-critical-materials-and-critical-minerals.

13 U.S. Geological Survey, 2025, Mineral commodity summaries 2025 (ver. 1.2, March 2025): U.S. Geological Survey, 212 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/mcs2025 14 Exec. Order No. 14156 of January 20, 2025, Declaring a National Energy Emergency, 90 Fed. Reg. 8433 (Jan. 29, 2025), https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/01/29/2025-02003/declaring-a-national-energy-emergency.

15 Exec. Order No. 14241 of March 20, 2025, Immediate Measures to Increase American Mineral Production, 90 Fed. Reg. 13673 (March 25, 2025), https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/03/25/2025- 05212/immediate-measures-to-increase-american-mineral-production.

https://www.iea.org/policies/17893-announcement-on-the-implementation-of-export-control-of-items-related-to-gallium-and-germanium https://www.iea.org/policies/17893-announcement-on-the-implementation-of-export-control-of-items-related-to-gallium-and-germanium https://www.iea.org/policies/17894-catalogue-of-commodities-subject-to-the-administration-of-export-licences https://www.iea.org/policies/26795-decision-to-implement-export-controls-on-tungsten-tellurium-bismuth-molybdenum-and-indium-related-items https://www.iea.org/policies/26795-decision-to-implement-export-controls-on-tungsten-tellurium-bismuth-molybdenum-and-indium-related-items https://www.iea.org/policies/26794-strengthening-the-export-control-of-relevant-dual-use-items-to-the-united-states https://www.iea.org/policies/26794-strengthening-the-export-control-of-relevant-dual-use-items-to-the-united-states https://www.iea.org/policies/26796-export-controls-on-certain-medium-and-heavy-rare-earth-items https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=(title:30%20section:1606%20edition:prelim) https://www.energy.gov/cmm/what-are-critical-materials-and-critical-minerals https://www.energy.gov/cmm/what-are-critical-materials-and-critical-minerals https://doi.org/10.3133/mcs2025 https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/01/29/2025-02003/declaring-a-national-energy-emergency https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/01/29/2025-02003/declaring-a-national-energy-emergency https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/03/25/2025-05212/immediate-measures-to-increase-american-mineral-production https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/03/25/2025-05212/immediate-measures-to-increase-american-mineral-production

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In order to comply with EO 13817,16 DOE’s program expanded its technology development effort in 2019 from a focus on coal-based resource recovery of REE to include the full suite of critical materials.

As a result, DOE’s program in 2020 required existing domestic small pilot-scale facilities to co-produce other critical materials in addition to producing REE. In 2021, DOE’s program initiated basinal coalition efforts to address realization of the full economic potential value of U.S. natural resources for producing REE, other critical materials, and high-value, nonfuel, carbon-based products. Efforts were to also holistically assess not only upstream mining of resources and physical separation (e.g., beneficiation), but also midstream extraction, separation, recovery, and purification of critical and high-value materials, and, ultimately, onshore downstream manufacturing that incorporates these materials into commodity or national defense products.

During 2022-2023, three funding opportunities were released using IIJA Section 41003(b) funds to support development of Association for the Advancement of Cost Engineering (AACE) Class 3 cost estimates for the design of facilities to produce up to a demonstration-scale rate of 1-3 tonnes/day of mixed rare earth oxides/salts (MREO/MRES) from unconventional feedstock resources, as well as development of advanced unconventional rare earth processing circuits (aka ‘pathways’ or ‘processes’) for the reduction of overall process system capital and operating expenditures by approximately 20% in comparison to process operations that use conventional separations and refining circuits. All opportunities allowed for or required coproduction of other critical minerals.

All told, prior DOE FECM-funded research and development (R&D) efforts have successfully demonstrated the technical feasibility of separating and recovering MREO/MRES and other critical minerals and materials such as nickel, cobalt, manganese, gallium, germanium, lithium, etc., from unconventional and secondary, domestic, coal-based resources using conventional processing technologies at the bench- and small pilot-scale or larger.

C. Program Goals and Objectives This NOFO invests in American industrial facilities that have the potential to produce valuable critical materials from existing industrial processes and legacy waste streams. Industries such as mining and mineral processing, power generation, coal, oil and gas, specialty metals, and basic materials have the potential to recover valuable materials that will address many of America’s most severe mineral vulnerabilities. The goal of this NOFO is to increase domestic critical material production.

American industrial facilities have enormous potential to recover valuable mineral coproducts and byproducts from ongoing operations and legacy waste streams such as mine tailings, impoundments, and coal ash. To de-risk industry investments, the technology for recovering these materials must be piloted under real-world conditions and at a scale relevant to each industry.

This NOFO will support the design, construction, and operation of large (1:50 scale or larger), ‘right-sized’ pilot processing systems at domestic industrial facilities. Successful pilots may produce a wide variety of critical material products, including oxides, salts, metals, alloys, and non-critical material value-added products.

16 Exec. Order No. 13817 of Dec. 20, 2017, A Federal Strategy to Ensure Secure and Reliable Supplies of Critical Minerals, 90 Fed. Reg. 60835 (Dec. 26, 2017); see also U.S. Dep’t of Interior, Notice of Final List of Critical Minerals 2018, 83 Fed. Reg. 23295 (May 18, 2018).

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DOE envisions that the large pilots will generate critical information resulting in near-term commercial project viability. Successful pilots will reduce technical uncertainty and financial risk prior to commercial deployment. Should funding and DOE goals align, NOFO award recipients may be considered eligible for possible follow-on scale-up funding opportunities, should DOE pursue such ventures.

D. Expected Performance Goals Performers will design, construct, and operate large pilot facilities (1:50 scale or larger) to produce critical materials necessary for our energy, defense, and economic security and to de-risk commercial scale production technologies to grow new economic and manufacturing opportunities.

Projects will produce qualified market-ready critical material products and other value-added materials with potential offtake agreements. Projects will show they are on track to meet their pilot objectives by producing defined quantities of critical materials at the proposed scales in each phase, subject to evaluation through go/no-go milestones. In addition, projects will generate the critically needed information and operational data required for the development of a near-term commercial facility within the U.S.

Two topic areas are defined based on eligible feedstock and the technology readiness level (TRL). See the attached Technology Readiness Level Reference for TRL definitions.17

1. Topic Area 1: Mines & Metals Pilots—Coal-Based Industry Topic Area 1 requires the use of coal and coal byproducts as feedstocks with minor or limited emphasis on the use of other (non-coal) industrial-based mining materials. This includes domestic coal-based feedstock materials (e.g., lignite, refuse tailings, etc.) and/or industrial coal-based wastes (e.g., prep plant wastes, power generation fly/bottom ash, coal-based acid mine drainage (AMD), etc.).

Previously developed bench-scale efforts are expected to advance the TRL of their process/system from 5 to 7.

Applications to Topic Area 1 must recover rare earth elements from the feedstock and can recover other critical materials and value-added products.

2. Topic Area 2: Mines & Metals Pilots—All Industries This topic area broadly supports piloting the recovery of valuable critical material byproducts and other value-added products from industrial feedstocks, processes, and process wastes including mine waste.

Feedstocks for Topic Area 2 can come from all industry sources other than coal-based industry and feedstock materials related to post-consumer and manufacturing scrap recycling.

Previously developed bench-scale efforts identified for Subtopic 2a are expected to advance the TRL of their process/system from 4 or 5 to 7. Previously developed pilot-scale efforts identified for Subtopic 2b are expected to advance the TRL of their process/system from 6 or 7 to 7 or 8.

Applications to Topic Area 2 can recover any critical material.

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E. Teaming Partner List DOE is compiling a Teaming Partner List to facilitate the formation of project teams for this NOFO. The Teaming Partner List allows organizations that may wish to participate on a project to express their interest to other applicants and explore potential partnerships.

The Teaming Partner List will be available on eXCHANGE and will be regularly updated to reflect new teaming partners who provide their organization’s information.

SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS: View the Teaming Partner List by visiting the eXCHANGE homepage and clicking on “Teaming Partners” within the left-hand navigation pane. This page allows users to view published Teaming Partner Lists. To join the Teaming Partner List, submit a request within eXCHANGE.

Select the appropriate Teaming Partner List from the drop-down menu, and fill in the following information: Investigator Name, Organization Name, Organization Type, Topic Area, Background and Capabilities, Website, Contact Address, Contact Email, and Contact Phone.

DISCLAIMER: By submitting a request to be included on the Teaming Partner List, the requesting organization consents to the publication of the above-referenced information. By facilitating the Teaming Partner List, DOE is not endorsing, sponsoring, or otherwise evaluating the qualifications of the individuals and organizations that are identifying themselves for placement on this Teaming Partner List.

DOE will not pay for the provision of any information, nor will it compensate any applicants or requesting organizations for the development of such information.

F. Coordination With Other DOE Activities

1. Critical Materials Collaborative

To help ensure a secure domestic supply of critical materials, the DOE is investing in accelerating production from a diverse set of sources (e.g., secondary, unconventional, conventional) and working with other government and private agencies as part of a government-wide Critical Materials strategy.

As part of this strategy, the DOE has established a Critical Materials Collaborative (CMC)18 to be a centralized entity for multidisciplinary, collaborative, critical materials applied research, development, and demonstration (RD&D). The CMC will coordinate critical material innovation across the DOE,19 other government agencies, industry, and academia, as well as providing enabling technologies to reduce commercialization time and risk.

All selected projects from this NOFO are required to participate as a member of the CMC, which is a coalition of DOE offices, federal agencies, and federally funded R&D programs to:

• Align the DOE research portfolio to achieve administration and Science and Technology objectives;

• Advance applied RD&D related to critical materials;

• Accelerate the adoption and deployment of innovation;

• Nurture and expand the innovation ecosystem; and

• Facilitate scientific and technical exchange and discussion.

18 https://www.energy.gov/cmm/critical-materials-collaborative 19 https://www.energy.gov/cmm/critical-minerals-materials-program https://www.energy.gov/cmm/critical-materials-collaborative#:%7E:text=The%20Critical%20Materials%20Collaborative%20%28CMC%29%20will%20operationalize%20interagency,their%20access%20to%20world-class%20expertise%2C%20capabilities%2C%20and%20facilities.

https://www.energy.gov/cmm/critical-materials-collaborative https://www.energy.gov/cmm/critical-minerals-materials-program

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The Recipient’s principal investigators or a member of their research team are expected to participate in coordination efforts including, but not limited to, an in-person annual symposium, virtual coordination meetings, and periodic presentations on research progress. There are no membership fees associated with participation in the CMC.

The proposed Recipients to this NOFO should take into consideration possible collaboration with the programs supported by other DOE program offices.20 Projects funded as a result of this NOFO will be encouraged to explore opportunities to coordinate with projects funded by other DOE offices and federal agencies through the CMC in order to maximize the scientific and technological impact.

Recipients are expected to participate in the CMC through the end of the period of performance and may be invited to participate in the CMC up to one year after the project has concluded. Participation after the project has concluded is optional.

2. Notice of Intent from DOE Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains

(MESC)

MESC has released an IIJA Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) DE-FOA-0003587, “Rare Earth Elements Demonstration Facility.” The NOFO aims to provide 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. The facility must source feedstock derived from acid mine drainage, mine waste, e-waste, or other deleterious or harmful materials resulting from mining or industrial operations. The Notice of Intent and future NOFO, if released, can be found on eXCHANGE at https://infrastructure-exchange.energy.gov/.

3. Notice of Intent from DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Technologies Office

(AMMTO)

AMMTO has released a Notice of Intent to Issue NOFO DE-FOA-0003589, “Critical Minerals and Materials Accelerator.” The anticipated AMMTO NOFO will focus investments on American, industry-led partnerships to prototype and pilot innovative critical materials production technologies that are currently only proven at the bench scale to address challenges in high-impact areas. The Notice of Intent can be found here: https://www.energy.gov/eere/ammto/critical-minerals-and-materials-accelerator-0.

20 https://www.energy.gov/cmm/critical-materials-around-department-energy https://www.energy.gov/eere/ammto/critical-minerals-and-materials-accelerator-0 https://www.energy.gov/cmm/critical-materials-around-department-energy

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G. Topic Areas There are two Topic Areas in this NOFO:

• Topic Area 1: Mines & Metals Pilots—Coal-Based Industry

• Topic Area 2: Mines & Metals Pilots—All Industries o Subtopic 2a: Mines & Metals Pilots—All Industries—Prior Bench-Scale Facilities o Subtopic 2b: Mines & Metals Pilots—All Industries—Prior Pilot-Scale Facilities

The Topic Area requirements and guidance are described below.

Topic Area

Minimum Beginning TRL

Preferred Beginning TRL

Minimum Ending TRL

Preferred Ending TRL

1 5 5 7 7 2a 4 5 7 7 2b 6 7 7 8

1. Information and Requirements for both Topic Areas The following information applies to all Topic Areas and Subtopics.

The overall objective is to design, construct, and operate large pilot critical material production facilities (1:50 scale or larger) in the U.S. that will produce critical material byproducts from industrial processes.

These pilots will deliver critical data needed for near-term commercial scale-up by using real-world industrial feedstocks and materials for verification and validation of the commercial potential of their processes/system, including, but not limited to:

• data on the performance of individual processing circuits/systems and their overall integration,

• process models,

• capital and operating costs,

• scaling factors, and

• feedstock and end-product characterization.

Applicants are advised to review the Feedstock and Critical Materials Production Data Sheet and Technology Commercialization Plan structures ahead of drafting the Technical Volume to ensure appropriate information is reported in each place and is aligned across full application materials.

Critical Material Byproduct Targets at Domestic Industrial Sites Applications must focus on the development of fully operational processing systems, located at and integrated with a domestic industrial site, that will be operated in a continuous/semi-continuous21

21 Semi-continuous operation combines aspects of both batch and continuous methods, allowing for the flexibility of batching with the efficiency of continuous operation.

Version 2.0 Page 19 of 54 manner to produce market-ready critical materials.12,13,22,23 DOE Critical Materials include all minerals on the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) List of Critical Minerals plus additional materials for energy. It is within scope to produce any market-ready critical material including critical material concentrates, high purity materials, or material commodities such as mixed oxides, salts, alloys, etc.

Applicants are encouraged to consider production of materials that support both energy security and national defense needs. Applicants are also encouraged to reference the DOE Critical Materials List12 and USGS 2025 Mineral Commodity Summaries Report.13 Of particular interest are the production of critical materials with low or zero current domestic production. Critical materials with limited domestic production include arsenic, antimony, bismuth, chromium, fluorine, gallium, germanium, graphite, indium, manganese, magnesium, niobium, scandium, tantalum, tin, tungsten, rare earth elements, and yttrium.

Large Pilot-Scale Facility Size and Operational Information The large (1:50 scale or larger) pilot-scale systems of interest in this NOFO should be ‘right-sized’ to demonstrate production of critical materials in quantity and purity specifications to support and establish the basis for near-term commercial production of saleable critical materials. The ’right-sized’, large pilot must have a critical material production capacity target of at least 2% (1:50 scale) of a commercial-scale system. For example, if the targeted critical material production of a large pilot-scale facility is 25 metric tons per year (tpy), and it is identified that commercial-scale systems for that targeted material generally produce 300 tpy, then the large pilot-scale facility would produce 25/300 = 8.3% of a commercial-scale system.

Feedstock and Byproduct Critical Material Target The intent is to pilot potential byproduct material valorization at industrial sites including ongoing industrial production streams and waste impounded at active sites or sites of former industrial activity.

The use of domestic feedstocks is preferred. Any feedstock located within the U.S. is considered domestic regardless of its original source. For example, mine waste at a U.S. facility that was originally mined from foreign territory is considered a domestic feedstock. No federal funding can be used to procure foreign feedstock.

Applications proposing feedstock materials related to post-consumer and manufacturing scrap recycling are specifically not of interest.

Applicants must identify the feedstock and quantify the feedstock throughput and critical material production, in terms of metric tons per year, that:

• has been successfully demonstrated in their existing bench-scale or pilot-scale system on actual (non-simulated) feedstocks,

• is targeted for their proposed large pilot-scale facility, 22 U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey. Methodology and Technical Input for the 2025 U.S. List of Critical Minerals—Assessing the Potential Effects of Mineral Commodity Supply Chain Disruptions on the U.S.

Economy: https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2025/1047/ofr20251047.pdf 23 Notice of Final Determination on 2023 DOE Critical Materials List, 88 Fed. Reg. 51792 (Aug. 4, 2023), https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2023/08/04/2023-16611/notice-of-final-determination-on-2023-doe-critical-materials-list.

https://www.energy.gov/cmm/what-are-critical-materials-and-critical-minerals https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2025/1047/ofr20251047.pdf https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2023/08/04/2023-16611/notice-of-final-determination-on-2023-doe-critical-materials-list https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2023/08/04/2023-16611/notice-of-final-determination-on-2023-doe-critical-materials-list

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• is generally targeted in ideal commercial-scale systems,24 and

• is targeted for future commercial-scale operation at the site.

Applicants must state the purity specification of the commercial market-ready critical materials to be produced. The large pilot projects must aim to meet specific quantity and purity standards for the critical material(s) produced or explain why that is not technically, operationally, or economically feasible or appropriate for this project.

In addition, applicants must describe the overall impact of the large pilot-scale system, as well as a potential future commercial-scale system, on the foreign import reliance for each critical material produced. For example, the large pilot-scale system may reduce import reliance of a specific critical material from 90% to possibly 85% and a future commercial-scale system may further reduce the import reliance to possibly 50%.

Projects must utilize feedstock materials that are sufficiently abundant to support the awarded project and maintain future pilot operational capacity for a minimum of five years. Applicants must provide evidence of material availability in the quantity needed to fulfill this 5-year requirement.