Phoenix Tailings Hosts Energy Assistant Secretary at New Hampshire Rare Earth Metallization Facility

Phoenix Tailings hosted Assistant Secretary of Energy Audrey Robertson and Acting Assistant Secretary for Hydrocarbons and Geothermal Energy Curt Coccodrilli at its commercial rare earth metallization facility in Exeter, New Hampshire, on Friday. GlobeNewswire reported the visit on November 2, 2026. The Department of Energy has provided $66 million in HERALD grant support to the company.

Inside the Exeter Metallization Facility

Phoenix Tailings is a privately held rare earth metals producer founded in 2019 that uses proprietary emissions-free electrochemical refining and selective halogenation chemistry to convert mining waste and domestic feedstocks into finished rare earth metals and alloys, supplying U.S. defense, automotive, and medical device customers from vertically integrated facilities in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. The Exeter facility converts rare earth oxides into metal, a stage in rebuilding America's industrial supply chain. The company describes the operation as one of the largest and most advanced rare earth metallization facilities in the free world.

Nicholas Myers, CEO and Co-Founder of Phoenix Tailings, said: "Nobody who ever did anything great did it alone. It's the people around you who make you great. This initiative brings more of those people together to solve the challenge of supply chain security. Thank you to Assistant Secretary Robertson and Acting Assistant Secretary Coccodrilli for their hard work to ensure America retains its freedom."

The Department of Energy has supported Phoenix Tailings from its early ARPA-E funding, with support from Doug Wicks, through its previously announced $66 million HERALD grant to advance the processing of nontraditional rare earth feeds such as monazite. Founded before China's recent rare earth export restrictions, Phoenix encountered a shortage of trained operators as it developed its technology. That experience shaped the company's approach to making complex industrial processes easier to learn and run, including through its FactoryOS software platform. DOE's new PROSPECT workforce training initiative addresses the broader need for skilled workers across the domestic critical minerals industry.

Phoenix Tailings' Federal Funding Commitments

According to akta.pro company records, Phoenix Tailings was awarded a $66 million DOE Rare Earth Demonstration Facility Program grant as part of a $147.8 million project with MIT and the University of Minnesota, expanding the company's capabilities upstream from metallization into rare earth separation. The same records show a conditional $500 million long-term debt financing commitment from the U.S. Department of War's Office of Strategic Capital for the Freedom Facility. The company has signed over $100 million in supply contracts with undisclosed buyers for its rare earth metals output.

Earlier Expansion and Financing Steps

In October 2026, Phoenix Tailings announced a $375 million facility at Eastman Business Park in Rochester, N.Y., with plans for a separation facility that will initially support 90 direct jobs and could grow to 200 at full capacity, Yahoo reported. Devdiscourse reported that operations at the Rochester site are scheduled to start next year, with full production in 2028. In June 2026, the Department of Defense's Office of Strategic Capital announced a conditional commitment to provide $500 million in long-term debt financing to Phoenix Tailings for building the Freedom Facility, a fully integrated domestic rare earth separation and metallization platform, Manufacturing Dive reported.

What Comes Next for Phoenix Tailings

Phoenix Tailings plans to expand its workforce through DOE's PROSPECT workforce training initiative. The company's Rochester facility is scheduled to begin operations next year, with full production in 2028.