Colorado School of Mines in Golden has been awarded $67 million from the U.S. Department of Energy, alongside Texas-based ElementUSA, to help build a rare-earth processing plant in Gramercy, Louisiana. While the facility itself will be built out of state, the announcement is still significant for Jefferson County because Mines will lead major research, validation and project development work through its Waste to Value Center in Golden. The project aims to recover rare earth elements from alumina tailings, supporting domestic supply chains for advanced manufacturing, energy, electronics and defense.
Why this is relevant to businesses in Jefferson County:
- Colorado School of Mines, based in Golden, is a central partner, bringing federal funding, research activity and industry attention into Jefferson County.
- The project strengthens Golden’s growing critical-minerals and energy-innovation ecosystem, which can benefit local engineering firms, contractors, suppliers and workforce partners.
- Rare-earth processing is tied to sectors important to Colorado and the broader U.S. economy, including semiconductors, defense and clean energy manufacturing.
For Jefferson County’s business community, the award reinforces Golden’s role as a hub for critical minerals research and commercialization. Mines said the Waste to Value Center will use its expertise across the mineral value chain to optimize, de-risk and validate the project. That kind of work can create opportunities for local companies involved in lab services, engineering, environmental consulting, equipment supply and talent recruitment.
The announcement also adds momentum to a broader cluster forming around critical minerals in Golden. Mines noted that the city’s innovation ecosystem includes the National Laboratory of the Rockies and the U.S. Geological Survey’s Energy and Minerals Research Facility, which is expected to open on the Mines campus in 2027. For local businesses, that means more potential partnerships, more visibility with federal and industrial stakeholders, and stronger long-term positioning in a strategic national industry.
Source: Press Release