Know which mineral projects just got funded, before your competitors do.
The US is rebuilding its rare-earth and critical-minerals supply chain, and federal money is moving fast. We track the companies that just won funding, a federal award, an offtake or magnet deal, or a permit. Each week we hand the firms who staff and supply them a clean, verified list.
Built for mining and rare-earth recruiters, services and equipment vendors, EPCM firms, and processors.
Issue 008 · Jul 27
- Rare earths & magnets
- Antimony
- Tungsten
- Lithium
- Graphite
- Nickel
- Copper
- No project
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Federal figures from DOE, NETL, and EXIM announcements.
The build-out we track, live
A map of the real rare-earth, lithium, and critical-minerals projects we monitor. Filter by commodity, and click any project for its scale, funding, and status.
Curated, verified sample; figures from company filings, DOE, NETL, EXIM, and trade press. Circle size indicates relative scale, not exact output.
Know the elements behind it
What each rare earth and critical mineral is used for, how dependent the US is on imports, and which projects we track are bringing it onshore. Click any element.
Uses are established industry facts; import reliance from USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries (rare earths reported as a group, ~67%).
From mine to magnet, and where the gap is
A rare earth is useless until it becomes a magnet. This is the path from rock to motor, and where the US is strong, building, or still short. Click any stage.
China-share figures from Mining Technology; US production and project facts from USGS and company filings.
A rare-earth and critical-minerals race is creating signals faster than anyone can track them.
Funding, federal awards, offtake and magnet agreements, permits, and new projects are scattered across SEC filings, DOE and NETL funding pages, state permit offices, technical reports, and trade press. They go stale within weeks. A company that just landed capital has budget and a mandate to move now. The hard part is finding them first, in your exact corner of the market, and knowing which team to approach. That is the work we do for you.
Trigger-based
Every record ties to a recent event: a funding round, a federal award, an offtake or magnet deal, a permit, or a project milestone.
Verified, not scraped-and-dumped
We confirm each signal against its public source and enrich it with the project, the stage, and the role to approach.
Fresh weekly
Mineral projects move quarter to quarter. You get current events, not a list compiled a year ago.
What we track
We monitor the public sources that actually precede a hire or a purchase in this sector, including the long-tail government data most lists ignore.
Federal awards & capital
DOE and NETL rare-earth and critical-minerals awards, EXIM letters of interest, Commerce CHIPS support, and private financings.
SEC & technical reports
EDGAR and SEDAR+ filings and NI 43-101 technical reports from public juniors and mid-caps.
Permits & mine data
State mining and reclamation permits, MSHA new mine IDs, and USGS rare-earth and critical-mineral resource data.
Offtake & magnet supply chain
Offtake agreements, magnet and separation MOUs, and joint ventures that signal a project moving toward production.
Workforce surges
Job postings and hiring spikes at operators, separation plants, and magnet makers, a direct sign of expansion.
Rare earths to battery metals
Rare earth elements (neodymium, praseodymium, dysprosium, terbium, and more), plus lithium, copper, nickel, cobalt, gallium, scandium, germanium, and coal-derived critical minerals.
Who it's for
If your customers are the companies building the domestic rare-earth and minerals supply chain, you are who we serve.
Mining & metallurgical recruiters
A funded or permitting operator is about to hire mining, metallurgical, separation, geological, and processing engineers. That is a client you can pitch today.
Services & drilling firms
New projects need drilling, assay, and field services. Reach them when the work is being scoped, not after it is awarded.
Equipment & processing vendors
Crushing, separation, hydrometallurgy, magnet, and handling equipment suppliers selling into new build-outs.
EPCM & permitting consultants
Engineering, procurement, and environmental and permitting firms looking for projects entering the design and approval phase.
Coal is becoming a rare-earth feedstock, and almost no one is tracking it for you.
The US imports about 67% of its refined rare earths, while domestic coal, coal waste, and coal ash are being reconsidered as a strategic source. DOE and NETL are funding the build-out, and operators are moving. Ramaco Resources, for example, has targeted roughly tripling planned rare-earth and critical-mineral oxide output at its Brook Mine in Wyoming. It has also signed offtake MOUs with magnet makers. Coal sits between mining and power, and we cover that seam directly.
Recent signals, the kind you would receive
A sample of real 2026 events. In your feed each is filtered to your niche and enriched with the project, stage, and role to approach.
The weekly brief
Upstream Signals Weekly is our free, sourced read on the U.S. critical-minerals, rare-earth, and coal build-out. Read the latest issue, then get it in your inbox.
This week: the defense waiver cliff is dated January 1, and it comes with its own escape hatch
Plus Reuters on an industry nowhere near ready for that deadline, the USGS count of coal beneath federal land at 356 billion short tons, roughly 1.69 million Utah acres opening to mineral entry on September 11, the Energy Department's single application to fourteen federal funders, and a Utah fluorspar plant ramping August 15. Featured commodity: cobalt.
Free, weekly, and sourced. The downloadable PDF links every claim to its primary source.
How it works
You define the target
Commodity (rare earths, a specific critical mineral, or coal), project stage, geography, and which buyers you sell to or recruit for.
We monitor and verify
We track the public sources, confirm each signal, and enrich it with the project, the stage, and the role to approach.
You get a clean list
Delivered weekly as a spreadsheet or into your CRM, with the source link for every signal.
Simple, intro pricing
Start free with the weekly brief, upgrade to signals filtered to your niche, then add multi-commodity coverage and CRM delivery when you are ready to act. Intro rates for the first clients while we build case studies.
- Weekly curated signal list
- One commodity or region of your choice
- Every signal sourced and linked
- To your inbox or a spreadsheet
- Everything in Signals
- The role to approach and the public route to reach it, on every record
- Multiple commodities or regions
- Delivered to a spreadsheet or your CRM
- One-off targeted lists, up to 150 verified records
- Weekly monitoring retainers from $400 / mo
- Multi-commodity, company-level enrichment at volume
- Done for you, to your spec
Prefer annual? Two months free. The free weekly brief is the way in; custom volume and multi-commodity pricing on request.
Questions
Do you cover rare earth elements specifically?
Yes. Rare earths are our marquee category, light and heavy, including neodymium, praseodymium, dysprosium, and terbium, across mining, separation, and the magnet supply chain, alongside the broader critical minerals and coal-derived rare earths.
Where does the data come from?
Every signal we publish is traced to and cited from a public source: SEC and SEDAR+ filings, DOE, NETL, and EXIM funding announcements, state mining and reclamation permits, MSHA and USGS data, company newsrooms, and trade press. We may use paid industry tools to find and cross-check leads, but we do not republish subscriber-only content, and we never use confidential or non-public information.
How is this different from the big intelligence platforms?
Platforms like the large mining-data providers are built for investors and major operators at enterprise prices. We are built for the recruiters and vendors who staff and supply the sector, filtered to your niche, done for you, and priced for a small team.
Do you cover coal?
Yes. Coal sits between mining and power and is increasingly a rare-earth feedstock, so it is a core part of our coverage, including the coal-to-rare-earth projects DOE is funding.
Do you provide people’s personal contact details?
No. Our lists cover companies, projects, and the role to approach, together with the public route to reach that team, such as a company careers or investor-relations page. We do not compile, sell, or deliver the personal contact details of named individuals.
Get a free sample list
Tell us your commodity, rare earths, a specific critical mineral, or coal, and who you sell to or recruit for. We will send a short, real sample so you can judge the quality before paying anything.
Email us your targetOr book a 15-minute call to scope it together.