Asst. Energy Secretary to visit
Audrey Robertson coming Tuesday
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HOUGHTON -- U.S. Assistant Secretary of Energy Audrey Robertson will visit Michigan Technological University on Tuesday for a campus visit focused on critical minerals, workforce development and Michigan Tech’s role in advancing U.S. energy priorities.
Robertson leads the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation and will visit Michigan Tech as the DOE moves forward with its new Prospect initiative, a nationwide effort to strengthen education and workforce development across the critical-minerals supply chain.
Earlier this month on Aug. 7, the DOE announced the launch of Prospect (Providing Opportunities for Specialized Education in Critical Technologies), a $100 million initiative designed to fix critical worker shortages in America’s mining and mineral supply chain. This investment is the largest workforce development program in the history of the DOE.
Michigan Tech is uniquely positioned to benefit from this push as one of only 14 universities nationwide with an accredited undergraduate mining engineering program [NMA]. To help shape the national framework for the initiative, University President Rick Koubek and representatives from the Department of Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences recently traveled to Washington, D.C., to participate in federal roundtables. In a statement, campus officials noted that the meetings highlighted a renewed national focus on local mining programs.
The United States faces significant workforce shortages across the supply chain, limiting the nation’s ability to meet growing demand for resources essential to energy, advanced manufacturing, and national defense. DOE estimates the U.S. will need approximately 6,000 new engineers in the mining sector alone over the next decade, while shortages in materials science, processing, and recycling continue to challenge efforts to strengthen domestic supply chains.
Among the program aims are to:
• Double the number of college graduates with degrees in mining, minerals, and related supply chain technologies within two years;
• Provide funds for education and training for every step of the process, from finding and extracting raw minerals to processing, manufacturing, and recycling;
• Bring together universities, private companies, and national laboratories to create strong, permanent career pathways.
A large portion of the funding is directly for student scholarships and financial assistance to help students enter the field.
The announcement of the Prospect initiative comes on the heels of the DOE's May announcement of $45.7 million for 19 projects that will unleash American energy innovation by addressing and filling domestic critical minerals and materials supply chain gaps. This funding supports the development of novel technologies that will be used in the production of critical materials by developing pilot-scale facilities for processing magnesium and rare earth elements.
In the near term, Prospect aims to expand educational opportunities and quickly develop the skilled workforce needed to support the domestic production, processing, recovery, and recycling of critical minerals. In the long term, the initiative will support the implementation of new curricula, teaching tools, financial-aid programs, and other incentives that promote continued growth in these fields.
During her visit, Robertson will meet with Michigan Tech leadership and students and tour campus facilities and research connected to critical minerals, mining, materials, recycling and other energy technologies.