en.Wedoany.com Reported - US-based EVelution Energy LLC has commenced construction of a 28-megawatt (MW) solar facility in Yuma County, Arizona, which will power its planned $450 million cobalt processing plant.

Once operational, the 150-acre solar site will become the first commercial-scale solar-powered cobalt metal and cobalt sulfate processing facility in the United States. Excess electricity will be stored in on-site batteries or fed directly into the local grid. The project directly challenges the foreign processing systems that currently dominate the critical minerals market.

"Today's groundbreaking marks another significant milestone in rebuilding America's domestic critical mineral processing capacity," said Navaid Alam, President and CEO of EVelution Energy. "The piles driven into the ground signal the start of a renewable energy system that will power the first cobalt metal and cobalt sulfate processing facility in the United States. We are equally proud that this project uses 100% American-made steel structures, American engineering, and American manufacturing."

Currently, China refines the majority of the world's cobalt. Cobalt is an indispensable raw material in products ranging from electric vehicle batteries to military jet engines and defense systems. By building the solar-powered refinery in one of the sunniest corridors of the southwestern United States, EVelution Energy is creating a solution for critical mineral processing independent of overseas supply chains.

Construction of the entire solar array is expected to take two years, spanning from 2026 to 2027. When the facility reaches full commercial operation by the end of 2029, it will process 24,000 tons of crude cobalt hydroxide feedstock annually, yielding approximately 20,000 tons of battery-grade cobalt sulfate and 3,000 tons of alloy-grade cobalt metal—enough to meet an estimated 40% of projected US cobalt demand.

The company uses 100% American-made steel structures for the solar framework and relies entirely on US engineering firms, including Aquila Energy and M3 Engineering. Located in a Qualified Opportunity Zone near the rural town of Tacna, Arizona, the project aims to inject $1.2 billion in annual economic activity into the region and is expected to create over 6,200 jobs over its lifecycle.

Crude cobalt is not mined in the United States. EVelution has reportedly signed agreements to source crude cobalt hydroxide feedstock from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Physical construction of the solar facility has officially begun with the installation of permanent steel support piles across the 150-acre site. These foundation piles will support thousands of solar panels that will power the upcoming cobalt processing facility. By directly integrating heavy industrial refining with local solar power and battery storage, the facility aims to break the long-standing US reliance on carbon-intensive foreign supply chains for processing critical minerals in its green transition. With the first steel piles driven into the ground, the countdown to the plant's 2029 commissioning has begun.