The symbolic first dig marked the official launch of construction activities including mine reopening, dewatering, and development, following expedited federal and state approvals. The mine, in southeastern Utah, was approved for fast-tracked development earlier this year, and the company said the milestone underscores the alignment between policy advancements and on-the-ground progress in revitalising the US domestic uranium supply chain.
(Image: Anfield)
The ground-breaking ceremony on 6 November took place as the US Geological Survey (USGS) published its newest list of critical minerals which, for the first time since 2018, now contains uranium – and the timing “could not be more auspicious”, Anfield said, adding that it “sets the stage for potential first production in 2026”.
“This is a transformative moment for both American energy security and Anfield,” said said CEO Corey Dias. “With uranium now officially classified as a critical mineral, our advanced-stage projects located in both Utah and Colorado potentially stand to benefit from expedited permitting, targeted federal investments, and enhanced market access. We’ve now broken ground at our Velvet-Wood mine, and this policy shift will supercharge our path to near-term production, delivering clean, reliable nuclear fuel to the grid while reducing reliance on overseas suppliers.”
(Image: Anfield)
Critical mineral
The US critical minerals list is published by the US Department of the Interior through the USGS, and is updated every three years. The contains all 50 critical minerals from the previous list, published in 2022, with the addition of 10 new minerals – boron, copper, lead, metallurgical coal, phosphate, potash, rhenium, silicon, silver, and uranium – based on new data, public feedback and interagency recommendations. Vanadium, which will also be mined at Velvet-Wood, was already on the list as a critical mineral.
The Department of Energy had recommended the addition of metallurgical coal and uranium to the list, citing the use of these minerals in steel production, energy, and defence. An Executive Order signed by President Donald Trump on his first day in office in January instructed the Director of the USGS “to consider updating the Survey’s List of Critical Minerals, including for the potential of including uranium”.
The US Energy Act of 2020 defines critical minerals as essential to the economic or national security of the USA; having a supply chain that is vulnerable to disruption; and serving “an essential function in the manufacturing of a product, the absence of which would have significant consequences for the economic or national security of the US”. Vanadium is also on the list.
Critical minerals designation unlocks a suite of federal incentives and streamlined processes which directly support Anfield’s hub-and-spoke model centred on its Shootaring Canyon Mill, Anfield said. Shootaring Canyon is one of only three licensed and permitted conventional uranium mills in the USA. It has been on standby since 1982, but in April 2024, Anfield submitted a production reactivation plan to the State of Utah’s Department of Environmental Quality.
