News and Media

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Intelligence Activity and the Hidden Architecture of Global Energy Security 6/12/2026

Intelligence Activity and the Hidden Architecture of Global Energy Security

Mines Future Energy Scholar Christian Luna has written this student commentary about how energy security is often presented as a structured and measurable concept, grounded in supply, infrastructure, and markets, yet this framing only captures what is visible. June 12, 2026.

The Millisecond Menace 6/10/2026

The Millisecond Menance

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian and Denis Kouroussis write about how the 800-volt DC data center promises faster, leaner AI infrastructure. But synchronized GPU power swings are turning electrical design into a millisecond-scale control problem.  June 10, 2026.

The Payne Institute at Colorado School of Mines Launches a new Research Project with The Rockefeller Foundation to Accelerate Rural Electrification in Zambia 6/10/2026

The Payne Institute at Colorado School of Mines Launches a new Research Project with The Rockefeller Foundation to Accelerate Rural Electrification in Zambia

The Payne Institute for Public Policy at the Colorado School of Mines is pleased to announce a new research project, supported by The Rockefeller Foundation. This twelve-month project will evaluate the role of artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) as a critical “base-load” demand driver to improve the commercial viability of rural mini-grids in Zambia in order to deliver reliable, affordable electricity to underserved communities in Zambia. May 10, 2026.

The Critical Minerals Trap Behind Directed-Energy Weapons 6/4/26

The Critical Minerals Trap Behind Directed-Energy Weapons

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian, Macdonald Amoah, and Senior Research Fellow Jahara Matisek write about how the Pentagon’s most promising answer to the munitions crisis requires materials controlled by the adversary it is designed to deter. Directed energy weapons (DEWs), high-energy lasers (HELs), and high-power microwaves (HPMs) that promise speed-of-light engagement and costs per shot measured in dollars are marketed as the solution to the broken economics of modern air defense. June 4, 2026.

Why the world needs more copper 6/3/2026

Why the world needs more copper

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian’s recent research on copper is featured in this article about how copper demand is rising faster than the world’s mines can supply it, creating a growing challenge for electrification, industry, and future economic growth.  June 3, 2026.

Colorado School of Mines and ElementUSA awarded $67M by DOE for construction of rare earth processing plant 6/2/2026

Colorado School of Mines and ElementUSA awarded $67M by DOE for construction of rare earth processing plant

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Elizabeth Holley unites an interdisciplinary team to advance the recovery of critical minerals from mine waste, from site selection to implementation. This work is aimed at strengthening domestic mineral supply chains while addressing challenges including waste characterization and recovery processes as well as the environmental, economic and societal dimensions of production.  June 2, 2026.  

Wyoming’s uranium mining industry is making a comeback 6/2/2026

Wyoming’s uranium mining industry is making a comeback

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian is featured on this podcast about how this year, the federal government invested billions into the uranium supply chain, Six mines are operating, up from three in 2021 — and much of it in Wyoming.  June 2, 2026.

Africa’s Solar Inflection Point 5/29/2026

Africa’s Solar Inflection Point

Macdonald Amoah and Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian write about how between June 2023 and June 2025, sub-Saharan Africa’s solar panel imports from China nearly tripled outside South Africa, rising from 3,734 MW to 11,248 MW. Twenty countries set individual import records.  They look at the trade data as its starting point and works outward. What is driving the import surge? Which countries are absorbing the volume, and why? May 29, 2026.

Stealth isn’t Strategy: Post-Stealth Warfare will be a “Dirty Mix” of Humans and Robots 5/28/2026

Stealth isn’t Strategy: Post-Stealth Warfare will be a “Dirty Mix” of Humans and Robots

Payne Institute Senior Research Fellow Jahara Matisek writes about how America’s fleet of stealth platforms is facing a crisis of relevance. The West is hurtling towards a ‘stealth cliff’ by pouring resources into platforms like the F-35.  Planned for service until 2070, this aircraft will become detectable and obsolete decades sooner. This dismantles the foundation of modern American power.  May 28, 2026.

Geochemical monitoring for carbon capture and storage projects: Quantifying risk through statistical methods 5/24/2026

Geochemical monitoring for carbon capture and storage projects: Quantifying risk through statistical methods

Payne Institute Geothermal and Low Carbon Technologies Program Manager Anna Littlefield, Alexis Navarre-Sitchler, and Joel Moore write about how carbon capture and storage (CCS) offers a practical approach for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.  The research analyzes publicly available, long-term (more than 3 years) geochemical datasets, focusing on alkalinity, to evaluate statistical methods for assessing geochemical anomalies. May 24, 2026.

Companies join a deep-sea mining rush after Trump executive order, as regulators fast-track permits 5/22/2026

Companies join a deep-sea mining rush after Trump executive order, as regulators fast-track permits

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Ian Lange contributed to this article about how in the year since President Donald Trump signed an executive order promising to create a deep-sea mining industry from scratch, businesses have raised millions of dollars from investors, stock prices have soared and federal regulators have raced to fast-track a permitting process.  May 22, 2026.

Is AI’s Next Frontier Underwater and in Orbit? 5/20/2026

Is AI’s Next Frontier Underwater and in Orbit?

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian, Fellow Alex Gilbert, Senior Research Fellow Jahara Matisek write about how AI compute is moving offshore and into orbit as power, cooling, land, and permitting constraints intensify. Subsea and orbital data centers could improve resilience but create new security, governance, and geopolitical risks.  May 20, 2026.

The Payne Institute experts are regional, national, and international leaders in applied research in natural resources, energy, and the environment. Our team is involved in a wide variety of research projects in these fields, and are committed to sharing these results with academic and professional audiences.

DISCLAIMER: The opinions, beliefs, and viewpoints expressed are those of the author alone and do not reflect the opinions, beliefs, viewpoints, or official policies of the Payne Institute or Colorado School of Mines.