The missing link in America’s critical minerals push isn’t mining – it’s processing expertise

Photo: An aerial photograph of the Mountain Pass Rare Earth Mine & Processing Facility in San Bernardino County, California – February 4, 2022. The Mountain Pass Rare Earth Mine & Processing Facility is the only active and scaled rare earth mining and processing facility in the United States. The facility is owned by MP Materials. Photo credit: Tmy350 via Wikimedia Commons. CC BY-SA 4.0 (photo was resized). Article by Hélène Nguemgaing and Alan Collins. The Conversation – May 11, 2026.

The United States is spending billions of dollars to secure access to critical minerals – minerals and metals that are essential to modern technology, from electric vehicles to smartphones and military systems. But amid the push to dig more, one question gets far too little attention: Who will actually process what comes out of the ground? Between mining and the finished product lies a complex chain of separation, refining and advanced manufacturing. Since the 1990s, however, the United States has lost much of its critical mineral processing capacity. […]

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