Highlights
- Wyoming hosts two major rare earth projects aimed at reducing the U.S.’s dependence on Chinese mineral processing.
- Despite the potential for upstream mining, significant midstream infrastructure challenges persist in developing domestic rare earth supply chains.
- Investors must consider full supply chain readiness, not just mining potential, when evaluating opportunities in rare earth minerals.
Wyoming is fast becoming the frontline of America’s upstream rare earth revival, with two major projects—American Rare Earths’ Halleck Creek (opens in a new tab) and Rare Element Resources’ Bear Lodge (opens in a new tab)—positioned as critical assets in the race to end U.S. dependence on China. However, retail investors eyeing this opportunity should weigh the promise of vast resources against the persistent midstream bottlenecks that threaten U.S. self-sufficiency. Not to mention all the risks in economically extracting the rare earth elements.
As reported by Cowboy State Daily (opens in a new tab), Wyoming is home to what’s described as the largest REE deposit in North America at Halleck Creek (2.63 billion tons), and Bear Lodge recently secured $553 million in debt financing backed by the U.S. Export-Import Bank. Both projects aim to displace California as the home of the only operating rare earth mine in the country.
Lawmakers and company executives alike are sounding the alarm, as is Rare Earth Exchanges (REEx).
America still lacks the processing infrastructure to turn mined ore into usable oxides and magnets. Despite bipartisan interest in reshoring critical minerals, permitting delays, legal roadblocks, and regulatory complexity are slowing U.S. buildout. As one executive testified, it can take “10 to 20 years just to get processing plants operational.” President Donald Trump’s executive orders have brought more attention to the topic’s imminence, however.
While Wyoming is rich in upstream potential, investors must not overlook the weak link—midstream and downstream capacity. Without scaled domestic separation, refining, and magnet production, these Wyoming mines may still rely on foreign (often Chinese) processors, undercutting the national security and economic gains they promise. Retail investors must understand rare earth element supply chains as systems, much like how oil is extracted from the ground and then processed to produce a wide range of final products for the market.
REEx urges retail investors to look beyond drill results and into full supply chain readiness. Upstream assets may be booming, but without synchronized policy reform, investment in midstream, and rapid permitting streamlining—not to mention integration with magnet, component, and assembly production operations- the United States remains exposed, and so do portfolios.
Rare Earth Element Deposits: USA
Visit Rare Earth Exchanges for continuous updates on the unfolding “ex-China” rare earth mineral marketplace. Visit the REEx Forum (opens in a new tab) for discussions.
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