Critical Minerals - Basic Facts For Utah

Utah has diverse geologic resources that host a wide variety of critical minerals. Utah hosts 50 of the 60 critical minerals on the 2025 list. Ten critical minerals are currently mined and at least partially processed in Utah. Processing refers to chemical or physical steps that transform raw ore into a usable product, such as taking a rock with trace gold and producing a rough gold bar. A further 10 commodities have been mined within the past 5 years in Utah, or there is a significant known resource. Seven commodities have historically been mined in Utah. Utah also has 23 critical mineral commodities that are known to occur at some level of enrichment but most of these are generally considered to have low development potential. Fourteen commodities, known as the Rare Earth Elements (REEs), are processed at the nation’s only uranium mill in southeast Utah, but the raw ore is from out of state. Utah is also home to one of only two active copper smelters in the United States.