Charleston, WV – Today, Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, announced that the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL), headquartered in Morgantown, WV, will receive a portion of more than $5 million through the U.S. Department of Energy for a project focused on technology to enable near real-time detection of rare earth elements and critical minerals from coal and coal waste, acid mine drainage, mine tailings, and water from oil and gas production. This builds on Chairman Manchin’s work to expand the domestic critical mineral and rare earth elements supply chain, including an $8M award to West Virginia University announced in April to support the development of a first-of-a-kind facility to separate and refine rare earth elements and critical minerals from mining waste.

“The National Energy Technology Laboratory continues to be a global leader in energy research including in rare earth metal and critical minerals necessary to advance the energy technologies of the future. I am proud to see NETL continue its work to help build a secure domestic supply chain for these products that will help reduce our reliance on foreign nations that don’t share our values. West Virginia is America’s energy powerhouse, and the NETL is helping to fulfill that legacy,” said Chairman Manchin. 

Project Description:

National Energy Technology Laboratory will accelerate commercial utilization and application of a technology that enables near real-time detection of rare earth elements and other critical minerals from domestic unconventional sources such as coal and coal wastes, acid mine drainage, mine tailings, and produced water from oil and gas production. This effort will help build a secure domestic supply chain for these materials, which are key to manufacturing clean energy technologies and are vital to our national defense.