American Resources' (AREC) ReElement Technologies unit received a $25 million investment from the US Department of Defense through the Industrial Base Fund to expand domestic rare earth refining capacity at its Marion, Indiana, facility, the company said Tuesday.

The funding will support additional refining equipment, production line installation and working capital to advance commercial production of high-purity rare earth elements and other defense-critical minerals, the company said.

The additional capacity will process both primary and recycled feedstocks to produce high-purity rare earth oxides and specialty critical minerals, including yttrium and gallium, for defense, aerospace, semiconductor and other strategic industries, the company added.