Published April 10, 2024
By Christine Reed
The School of Energy Resources (SER) will host the second annual forum for the Carbon Ore, Rare Earth, and Critical Mineral (CORE-CM) project in the Powder River Basin (PRB).
The event will take place on April 24 at the Northern Hotel in Billings, Mont., as well as online. It is open to any interested stakeholder, especially those located within the PRB of Montana and Wyoming.
Awarded by the Department of Energy (DOE) in 2021, Phase I of the CORE-CM project is part of a national strategy dedicated to finding alternative domestic sources of rare earth elements and critical minerals, as well as to focus on expanding and transforming the use of coal and coal-based resources to produce coal-based products using carbon ore.
The annual forum is part of the project directive to form a coalition of private industry, university, and state, local, and federal government to stimulate regional economic growth and employment opportunities in prominent coal basins.
“The Powder River Basin is one of the most prolific energy-producing basins in the U.S. and is the largest coal mining region by far,” says SER Program Manager Erin Phillips. “Last year we hosted the forum in Gillette and had great discussions on how we can continue to utilize these vast resources in support of a new critical mineral industry. This year, we are looking forward to engaging more with stakeholders, tribal and community members, and industries involved in critical material exploration in the Montana-side of the basin.”
The day-long forum will allow stakeholders and project partners to learn about updates and overviews of the varying tasks on the project, as well as hear from some featured keynote presentations, and participate in discussion sessions geared toward finding solutions for the development of a viable domestic supply of rare earth elements, critical minerals, and other valuable products.
Phillips, who also serves as the Principal Investigator (PI) on the project, says the event is very important in terms of broadening the network of people involved in developing new industries.
“We have had a lot of interest and participation in this project from across the region and we are very optimistic about the work that has already been conducted on Phase I of this project,” she says. “The PRB is well-positioned to grow this area of expertise, leverage existing infrastructure, and the more involvement we have from our coal communities, the better.”
To register for the conference or to view the schedule, visit the conference webpage at http://www.uwyo.edu/ser/events/conferences/core-cm-annual-forum/index.html
For more information, email Christine Reed, SER Outreach Director, at christine.reed@uwyo.edu.
