The company said Project Crucible, its planned non-ferrous metals complex in Clarksville, has been designated a covered project under FAST-41, a Washington program run by the Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council (Permitting Council) that consolidates federal permitting reviews for major infrastructure and resource developments.
"I am proud to welcome Project Crucible to FAST-41 coverage," said Emily Domenech, Permitting Council Executive Director on April 24.
"As we continue to prioritize domestic mining, expanding domestic processing capacity is just as important for economic and national security."
FAST-41 consolidates multi-agency reviews under a single schedule, typically shortening the path to a final decision by about 18 months.
The designation follows a memorandum of understanding signed in February between the U.S. Department of the Interior and Tennessee to streamline permitting. Korea Zinc said the federal and state review tracks will now proceed in parallel.
Only a handful of critical mineral projects have received such status, including South32’s Hermosa project in Arizona and Resolution Minerals’ Antimony Ridge in Alaska.
Project Crucible stands out for its scale and scope. The planned complex in Clarksville will produce 13 non-ferrous metals — including 11 designated as critical by the U.S. — along with semiconductor-grade sulfuric acid.
“This designation marks a key milestone in building a resilient critical minerals supply chain,” said Chairman Choi Yun-birm, adding the company will work closely with federal and state authorities.
Korea Zinc recently acquired Nyrstar USA’s smelting assets to establish its local operating arm, Crucible Zinc. Construction is slated to begin in 2027, with operations targeted for 2029 and annual capacity of about 1.1 million tonnes.
The project directly addresses a long-standing gap in U.S. metals processing capacity, which has eroded over decades amid refinery closures and a lack of new investment, leaving the country reliant on overseas — particularly Chinese — processing.
Once completed, the roughly 7 million-square-foot facility will produce key inputs such as antimony, copper, gallium, germanium, indium, lead and zinc, alongside gold and high-purity sulfuric acid.
The inclusion of gallium, germanium and indium positions the project at the core of semiconductor and advanced electronics supply chains, where processing remains heavily concentrated abroad.
It also targets vulnerabilities exposed by recent disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint for roughly half of global sulfur supply. By integrating sulfuric acid production domestically, the project aims to reduce exposure to geopolitical risks tied to Middle East-dependent supply chains.
Shares of Korea Zinc on Monday edged up 0.43 percent to 1,649,000 ($1,121) won as of 2:20 p.m. Seoul.
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