Indiana's new council will reclaim rare earths from coal, expand domestic processing, and reduce U.S. reliance on Chinese supply chains.
At the first meeting of the Indiana Rare Earth Recovery Council, state, federal and academic experts outlined plans to reclaim and process rare earth elements from coal and coal byproducts.
The council, created by Executive Order 25-62, will coordinate efforts to recover critical minerals from legacy coal materials and build domestic capacity to produce oxides and metals for supply chains. Governor Mike Braun emphasized Indiana's coal industry footprint as a strategic advantage for scaling recovery and processing.
U.S. Geological Survey Director Ned Mamula highlighted national dependence on foreign supply, noting roughly 70 percent of rare earth production and 90 percent of processing are concentrated in China, with heavy rare earth processing nearly entirely foreign-controlled. The technical goal is to move beyond extraction to onsite processing that yields commercial oxides and metals.
Presenters described technical pathways and site evaluations: a state research geologist outlined coal and coal-based materials as nontraditional feedstocks, and the Office of Surface Mining urged assessment of reclaimed sites for mineral prospects. Indiana's energy secretary framed the initiative as a timely economic and security opportunity. The council will pursue research, pilot projects and partnerships to position Indiana as a strategic domestic source.