DOE Announces “Critical Minerals and Materials Accelerator” Funding Opportunity

The NOFO, which advances the Trump administration’s goals of supporting domestic production of critical minerals directed under the Executive Order entitled “Immediate Measures to Increase American Mineral Production” (which we discuss here), is one of several NOFOs issued by CMEI. (We discuss the NOFO DOE previously issued to expand U.S. critical minerals and materials processing and derivative battery manufacturing and recycling here.) This most recent NOFO was previewed in DOE’s Notice of Intent that was issued in August 2025 (which we discuss here).

Below we provide further information regarding the NOFO, including topic areas of interest, requirements and goals of the NOFO, and considerations for entities seeking to apply as a recipient or be included as subrecipients.

Phased Approach
DOE will employ a phased approach for funding across three topic areas. The first phase will provide support for prototyping work (with a 20% cost share requirement for initial research and development), and the second for pilot scale demonstration (with a 50% cost share requirement for project costs). Certain projects awarded under Phase 1 will be eligible for Phase 2 funding through a down-select process.

Topic Areas
As a general matter, the NOFO appears to target innovative technologies that address supply chain gaps and vulnerabilities across stages of the supply chain by targeting production of chokepoints in the supply chains, supporting recovery from underutilized secondary sources, such as tailings and end-of-life products and from multiple or blended feedstocks, increasing yields and cost, material and processing efficiencies, and assessing the potential of recovery from unconventional sources.

Topic Area 1: Production and material efficiency for critical materials, including REEs and other critical minerals
According to DOE, Topic Area 1 is intended to “prototype recycling and recovery methods for … [Critical Minerals and Materials (CMM)] from various secondary sources, including post-industrial manufacturing scrap, post-consumer scrap, and combination of feedstocks (e.g., operational mine tailings).” Topic Area 1 has three subtopics:

1. Recovery and production from postindustrial manufacturing scrap. Scrap feedstocks include waste generated from refining CMM products (such as from copper or zinc refining) and from refining other primary metal products or manufacturing components (such as from steel making and magnet making). Materials of interest include certain REEs, gallium, germanium, silicon, nickel, cobalt, copper, and aluminum and modular recycling technologies that can be co-located at a refining or manufacturing site.
2. Recovery and production from postconsumer scrap, including electronic waste or e-waste and electric drivetrains containing permanent magnet machines, which contain multiple critical minerals. While e-waste can provide an important source of CMM feedstock, approximately 2% is recovered domestically. Challenges impeding CMM recovery may include relatively low and inconsistent levels of collection of e-waste, insufficient disassembly and sorting technologies, technological and economic challenges with recovery low-concentration minerals (rare earths, gallium, indium, etc.), and lack of standardized qualification and testing procedures for the introduction of recovered materials in the supply chains. Technologies of interest include those that would address these challenges, and materials of interest include ones identified in Topic Area 1A plus electrical steel.
3. Recovery and production from combinations of feedstocks, including operational (and not legacy) mine tailings, postindustrial scrap and postconsumer scrap, including processes or technologies that can process blended feedstock or multiple individual feedstocks. Materials of interest are the same as those identified in subtopic 1B.

These subtopics underscore DOE’s continued focus on scaling domestic recycling and recovery pathways for critical minerals, particularly from secondary sources that remain significantly underutilized in the United States. While these streams represent an important supply of critical minerals, they must also address the persistent challenges around collection, sorting and the economics of recovering low-concentration minerals.

Details related to funding during Phase 1 are as follows:

• Approximate total available funding: $24 million, with up to $2 million individual awards
• Approximate number of awards: 10–14
• Approximate project period: up to 36 months

Applications for Topic Area 1 are due on May 26, 2026.

Topic Area 2: Processes to refine and alloy gallium, gallium nitride, germanium and silicon carbide for use in semiconductors
According to DOE, Topic Area 2 seeks to fund prototyping initiatives for processes that can take primary or secondary feedstocks, extract and purify these elements to ultra-high purity levels required for semiconductor applications and/or form into precise forms suitable for domestic product manufacturing (such as powders, boules, ingots, single crystals).

The CMMs of focus have complex supply chains involving a number of stages and materials (including specialized precursor materials), some of which the United States has capabilities and some of which it does not. For each material of interest, the NOFO reviews relevant stages of the supply chain (extraction; purification; refining; alloying/reduction; crystallization, powder, ingot, boule formation; and recycling), relevant forms of material at each stage, and the level of domestic capacity at each stage. The NOFO also identifies stages of the supply chain that DOE is supporting by other funding initiatives, including the extraction and purification stages for gallium through the Trace-Ga funding opportunity, which we discuss here, and under which, on April 14, 2026, DOE announced $5.4 million for five projects.

Topic Area 2 is intended to address gaps in capabilities across the value chain and to integrate refinement at levels required for semiconductor or precision composition control for alloyed applications. Consistent with that focus, partnerships with feedstock providers and downstream partners for further manufacturing or use at grades required by semiconductor manufacturers is critical.

Details related to funding during Phase 1 are as follows:

• Approximate total available funding: $6 million, with up to $2 million individual awards
• Approximate number of awards: one to five
• Approximate project period: up to 36 months

Applications for Topic Area 2 are due on June 22, 2026.

Topic Area 3: Cost-competitive direct lithium extraction, separation, and processing, exploration and co-production
According to DOE, Topic Area 3 “seeks to develop cost-competitive methods to extract, separate, and process lithium from brine and clay sources” and “expand the sources of potential geothermal brines that can be used for lithium extraction and to develop pre- and post-processing capabilities to ensure cost-effective and environmentally safe extraction.” Topic Area 3 has three subtopics:

1. Cost-competitive direct lithium extraction (DLE). This includes any DLE technologies that “show significant potential for cost reduction” (such as through lowering reagent costs or increasing efficiencies in terms of processing steps) relative to current DLE technologies. Projects should have access to real lithium feedstock in relevant forms.
2. Advancing pre- and post- treatment and disposal technologies for DLE from geothermal brines. This includes technologies that increase selectivity of lithium from geothermal brines, increase purity and yields, reduce steps needed post-treatment to produce battery-grade lithium products, reduce costs and increase integration with downstream DLE technologies.
3. Exploration and characterization of critical materials and REEs from volcanic-hosted geothermal systems including economic critical materials/REEs found, associated quantities, and issues related to the concentration and solubility; and the size and nature of the geothermal resource, including how co-production of geothermal energy and critical material/REEs impact the viability of the resource.

With U.S. lithium production well below domestic demand, Topic Area 3 presents an opportunity for applicants with access to domestic brine or clay resources, particularly in geothermal-rich regions.

Details related to funding during Phase 1 are as follows:

• Approximate total available funding: $8 million for 3A with up to $2 million in individual awards; $9 million for 3B with up to $1–3 million in individual awards; and $6 million for 3C with up to $1–3 million in individual awards
• Approximate number of awards: four to six for 3A; three to nine for 3B; three to six for 3C
• Approximate project period: up to 24 months for 3A and B and up to 36 months for 3C

Applications for Topic Area 3 are due on July 20, 2026.

Focus on Creating a Pipeline for Innovative Technologies
Supporting and advancing innovative technologies is essential for securing U.S. critical minerals supply chains as discussed in the Council on Foreign Relations report “Leapfrogging China’s Critical Minerals Dominance.” In this regard, the NOFO targets mid-stage technologies that are currently only proven at the bench scale (Technology Readiness Level 3–4) with the goals to advance such technologies “through validation, benchmarking, access to national lab test beds, testing in industry relevant environments, technoeconomic analysis, and life-cycle assessment;” the path to commercialization for supported technologies is expected to be within three to seven years. These goals are reflected in the specific considerations and applications and technologies of interest provided in the NOFO with respect to each topic area. These include, among other things:

• Integration into downstream refining, including at grades needed for manufacturing in prioritized sectors, including semiconductors
• Partnerships with feedstock providers and offtakers
• Partnerships with hosts for testing and piloting technologies
• Support for requested technical assistance to further maturation and commercialization

Eligibility and Additional Considerations
As was the case with the NOFO related to advanced battery supply chain projects, which we discuss here, eligibility to be a recipient or subrecipient is restricted to domestic entities that meet the applicable definition. Generally, foreign entities may apply with a waiver request and the NOFO provides guidance with respect to considerations for the waiver, but the DOE advised through its Q&A that Prime Recipients “must be incorporated (or otherwise formed) under the laws of a State or territory of the United States and have a physical location for business operations in the United States.” Also, work awarded under the NOFO must be performed in the United States; applicants may submit a waiver request from this requirement. In addition, “entities of concern” as defined under the Chips and Science Act^[1] are prohibited from receiving awards under the NOFO and “entities of concern” and certain parties linked to “entities of concern” are prohibited from receiving DOE funds or performing work under any award.

Also, DOE may be interested in obtaining equity interests in recipient entities; applicants may indicate in their application whether they are open to providing such equity interests, with any related terms to be addressed during negotiations. Recent federal government investments in strategic industries have used a range of participation structures, including equity stakes of 5 to 15 percent, warrants, options and revenue-sharing arrangements.

Next Steps
The deadline to submit letters of intent is April 21, 2026, and the deadlines to submit applications by topic area are noted above. DOE expects to notify selected companies in July–August 2026, and award projects in September–December 2026.

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.

Entities seeking to apply for the NOFO or be part of a NOFO application as subrecipients should consider:

• Reviewing the Teaming Partner List to identify potential partners
• Reviewing DOE’s application requirements, deliverables and applications of interest, and technical review criteria
• Identifying partners for feedstock and offtake
• Developing commercialization plans and technical assistance needs
• Reviewing cost share requirements
• Review award rules, including guidelines governing federal financial assistance, allowable cost rules, and, if applicable, Build America, Buy America (BABA) requirements, Buy America requirements and Davis-Bacon Act requirements. Assessing the value of equity stakes and type of equity stakes

^{[1] An entity of concern is defined as any entity, including a national identified: (A) Under section 1237(b) of the Strom Thurmond National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1999; (B) Under section 1260H of the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021; (C) On the Entity List maintained by the Bureau of Industry and Security of the Department of Commerce; (D) In the list required by section 9(b)(3) of the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act of 2020; or € by the Secretary of Energy, in coordination with the Director of the Office of Intelligence and Counterintelligence and the applicable office that would provide, or is providing, covered support, as posing an unmanageable threat—(i) to the national security of the United States; or (ii) of theft or loss of United States intellectual property.}