A New Era for American Energy Begins in Wyoming
The ribbon-cutting for Brook Mine in Wyoming marked a turning point for American energy dominance. As the first new coal mine in Wyoming in nearly 50 years and the nation’s first rare earth element mine in over 70 years, Brook Mine will be crucial to reshaping America’s critical mineral supply chain.
Energy Secretary Chris Wright explained the vital role rare earth minerals play in our lives.
“Anything in your life that has a button, you start your car with the button or your dishwasher or your refrigerator, your washing machine, your F-35 fighter jet — all of those things have rare earth elements playing a critical role in the design and the operation of those products,” he said. “It’s an industry that infiltrates everything with a button, which in a modern world is almost everything.”
Ramaco Chairman and CEO Randy Atkins stated that the mine could supply nearly 30% of the U.S. Defense Department’s magnetic requirements, explaining that the rare earth elements will be extracted directly from coal, thereby bypassing the radioactivity and high costs typically associated with rare earth mineral mining.
“This is a pretty unique geologic spot,” Atkins said, calling it, “America’s mine.”
“Unlike most other rare earth deposits, which are in the hard mineral —which are not only harder to mine, harder to extract —they’re usually all radioactive,” he added. “And that is why they were all shipped to China. So, this is (radioactively) cold. Coal does not have radioactive tape, so we can both mine it easier and less costly.”
Our reports, “The Fight for Rare Earths” and “Where Green Meets Red,” warned that the increased demand for rare earth minerals would increase America’s dependence on China and other foreign adversaries, jeopardizing our nation’s security. The opening of Brook Mine will be a huge win for American energy and a significant step toward energy dominance.
July 15, 2025