rare earth elements

China recently banned exports of certain rare earth minerals to the U.S. as part of an ongoing tech war between the two superpowers. With the largest supplier of those minerals out, some experts weigh in on what this means for the growing industry in the Rocky Mountains.

Wyoming would like to have more control over regulating the rare earth mineral industry – the hope being it would spur nuclear development in the state.A bill that recently passed its committee would create a ‘source material associated with the mining agreement.’ Source materials are radioactive byproducts that can come from rare earth mineral mining, including the mineral uranium.

A rare earth mineral mining company speculates that a site in Albany County will be relatively affordable to mine.The company Western Rare Earths recently announced promising finds from its Halleck Creek project. Apparently, concentrations of rare earth minerals at the site are much better than expected, and the minerals extend at least 300 feet into the ground.

The $4.4 million grant from the Wyoming Energy Authority will help with the costs associated in the design and construction of the plant, which is in the final stages of the design phase. Construction is dependent of the approval of a permit issued by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which is currently reviewing the company's application.

Rare earth elements are a set of 17 silvery white metals with names mostly unknown to the general public, like neodymium and gadolinium. But the mining industry is spending millions of dollars looking for deposits throughout the Mountain West.

Rare Element Resources is in the final stages of the design and engineering phase of the facility with construction and acquisition of equipment taking place next year. Operations are set to begin in early 2024. Approximately 30 workers will be involved in the facility's construction with around 20 involved with its operation at the Upton's logistics center.

The Forest Service has issued a draft environmental impact statement for a proposed rare earth metals mine in northeastern Wyoming. The Bear Lodge project…

The first rare earth minerals mine to open in the U.S. in decades could be here in Wyoming. Permitting gets underway this week for the Bear Lodge mine,…

The Wyoming State Geological Survey has released a study showing an abundance of rare earth metals in rock samples from across the state.Rare earths are…

Many of today’s technologies are possible because of a special mineral group called rare earth elements. Currently, China produces about 97-percent of all…