Arizona Tribune - ReElement Technologies Receives Air Permits for Marion, Indiana Rare Earth and Critical Mineral Refinery

FISHERS, IN / ACCESS Newswire / August 19, 2026 / American Resources Corporation (NASDAQ:AREC) ("American Resources"), through its minority holding in ReElement Technologies Corporation ("ReElement"), a leading U.S. innovator in rare earth element (REE) and critical mineral refining, today announced that it has received its Minor Source air permit for all planned production lines at its Marion, Indiana Supersite. The permit represents another major milestone in the commissioning and commercialization of the Marion Supersite and demonstrate how ReElement, the City of Marion, Grant County, State of Indiana and the federal government worked collaboratively to complete a comprehensive review of one of the nation's first modular critical mineral refining facilities.

The Marion Supersite is designed to refine and purify rare earth elements and other critical minerals using ReElement's advanced chromatography-based separation and purification platform for rare earth elements and critical minerals. The four-line facility is being developed to support the production of separated high-purity products including germanium, gallium, neodymium, neodymium-praseodymium, dysprosium, terbium, gadolinium, yttrium and samarium from a diverse range of recycled materials, industrial byproducts and mineral feedstocks.

The air permit authorizes installation, commissioning, and operation of all four production lines in accordance with the permit requirements, applicable emission limitations, and operating conditions.

Issuance of the air permit represents a critical milestone, resolving one of the final non-commercial risks associated with commissioning the Marion Supersite. With air permitting now complete for all four Phase I production lines, ReElement's primary focus shifts from regulatory readiness toward equipment installation, commissioning and commercial production.

"Receiving the principal approvals necessary to operate the production lines represents a significant milestone in ReElement's commercialization," said Mark Jensen, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of ReElement Technologies Corporation. "The speed, diligence and professionalism demonstrated by the State of Indiana, the City of Marion, Grant County, federal authorities and the permitting authorities show what is possible when government and industry work together with urgency, transparency and a shared commitment to rebuilding critical-mineral supply chains in the United States."

Jensen continued, "This latest milestone validates more than our permitting strategy - it validates the philosophy behind our platform. ReElement was built on the belief that the critical mineral industry had fundamentally changed. Rather than attempting to improve upon the legacy solvent-extraction model, we developed a refining-first platform designed for a market that demands flexibility, speed, collaboration and capital efficiency. The future isn't about replicating legacy infrastructure and methodology; it's about enabling a new generation of refining capacity that can adapt to changing feedstocks, evolving technologies and shifting geopolitical priorities. We believe innovation - not imitation - will define the next generation of critical mineral supply chains."

ReElement worked closely with state and local authorities throughout the design, construction and permitting process. Because the Marion facility incorporates a differentiated refining process, the review required detailed technical coordination among ReElement's engineering and environmental teams, and air-permitting authorities. The parties were focused on completing the review on a commercially reasonable timeline without compromising environmental, health or safety standards.

The Company believes the permitting process establishes a strong model for deploying its modular platform elsewhere in the United States and most importantly with strategic international partners such as in Africa and Southeast Asia. Unlike conventional solvent-extraction facilities that commonly require extensive footprints, inelastic fixed infrastructure with numerous separation stages and large volumes of chemicals, ReElement's chromatography platform is designed to modularly scale by adding standardized production capacity that can share common infrastructure, controls, laboratories and finishing capabilities.

"America's critical-mineral challenge will not be solved by permitting and constructing only massive, centralized facilities that carry high intrinsic risk and take many years to bring online," Jensen added. "It will be solved through innovative technology, modular deployment and collaboration with jurisdictions that understand the urgency of the mission. The Marion Supersite is demonstrating that the United States can move quickly, maintain rigorous environmental safeguards and build advanced refining capacity at commercial scale. We believe this facility can serve as a model for future deployments in the United States and allied nations, supporting technology partnerships that enable countries to capture greater value from their natural resources while strengthening resilient global critical mineral supply chains."

With this permitting milestone achieved, ReElement's immediate focus is completing the installation and commissioning of the Marion facility's Phase I production lines, validating operating performance and advancing the facility toward scaled commercial production. When fully operational, the Marion Supersite is expected to serve as a flexible critical-mineral refining hub capable of supporting domestic defense, energy, automotive, semiconductor and advanced-manufacturing supply chains while serving as the commercial foundation for ReElement's future domestic and international expansion.

About ReElement Technologies Corporation

ReElement Technologies Corporation, a minority holding of American Resources Corporation (NASDAQ:AREC), is a leading provider of high-performance refining capacity for rare earth elements and critical minerals. Its refining-first, multi-mineral, multi-feedstock platform is designed to process a wide range of inputs - including recycled materials from permanent magnets, lithium-ion batteries, and industrial, defense, and technology waste streams, as well as mined ores, brines, and coal-based byproducts - into high-purity products that support a cost-effective, environmentally responsible, and circular supply chain.

ReElement's innovative and scalable "Powered by ReElement" process leverages its exclusively licensed and internally developed intellectual property, integrating directly into partners' material processing flowsheets to enhance efficiency and adaptability across the global critical mineral supply chain. For more information, visit reelementtech.com or connect with the Company on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

About American Resources Corporation (NASDAQ:AREC)

American Resources Corporation is strategically developing an integrated critical materials ecosystem through its Platform Orchestration strategy, which brings together complementary capabilities across commercial feedstock origination, industrial processing, and advanced refining. Through this capital-efficient approach, the Company is building a flexible platform designed to adapt to evolving technologies, customer requirements, and national priorities while strengthening domestic and allied critical mineral supply chains.

The Company's operating platforms span conventional and unconventional resource sourcing, feedstock aggregation, recycling, processing, conditioning, and advanced refining through its strategic affiliation with, and former parent relationship to, ReElement Technologies Corporation, a leading provider of high-performance refining capacity for rare earth elements and critical minerals. Together, these complementary capabilities enable American Resources to efficiently align diverse feedstock sources with growing commercial, industrial, and defense-sector demand.

American Resources' modular, asset-light business model emphasizes disciplined capital allocation, scalable growth, and strategic partnerships. By integrating complementary operating platforms rather than relying on traditional vertical integration, the Company is positioned to expand efficiently while supporting resilient, commercially sustainable supply chains across infrastructure, defense, advanced manufacturing, semiconductors, energy, and electrification markets. For more information, visit americanresourcescorp.com or connect with the Company on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Special Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other important factors that could cause the Company's actual results, performance, or achievements or industry results to differ materially from any future results, performance, or achievements expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. These statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond American Resources Corporation's control. The words "believes", "may", "will", "should", "would", "could", "continue", "seeks", "anticipates", "plans", "expects", "intends", "estimates", or similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain such identifying words. Any forward-looking statements included in this press release are made only as of the date of this release. The Company does not undertake any obligation to update or supplement any forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent events or circumstances. The Company cannot assure you that the projected results or events will be achieved.

Company Contact:
Mark LaVerghetta
317-855-9926 ext. 0
[email protected]

SOURCE: American Resources Corporation

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