Fluxnium Raises US$7 Million for Ocean Uranium as New Mexico Bans New Mining Leases

Seawater-extraction startup Fluxnium has raised US$7 million to advance its offshore uranium extraction technology, while New Mexico separately moves to ban new conventional uranium mining leases across state trust lands.

Congruent Ventures, a climate-focused firm with more than US$1 billion under management, led the seed investment round. Active Impact Investments, which manages US$180 million in assets, and Constellation Technology Ventures, the venture arm of US nuclear operator Constellation, also participated.

The Los Angeles-based startup, founded by Jeff Green and Jim McDermott, plans to deploy high-surface-area adsorbent fibers on passive longline marine systems.

The infrastructure mirrors existing commercial seaweed and mussel farms. Once submerged, the proprietary fibers collect trace dissolved uranium before operators retrieve them, process the material, and redeploy the lines. The core technology was recently developed alongside a US national laboratory.

While ocean concentrations remain extremely low, global seawater holds approximately 1,000 times more uranium than all identified terrestrial deposits combined, representing centuries of potential nuclear fuel supply.

However, the push for alternative extraction coincides with recent regulatory blockade.

New Mexico State Land Commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richard issued an executive order on September 3 halting all new uranium leases across state properties. The directive leaves the state with zero active conventional uranium mines despite historically accounting for more than half of all US production.

Garcia Richard ordered the State Land Office to prioritize the remediation of 1,000 legacy mining sites, including 250 locations abandoned following the industry's price collapse in the late 1970s. The moratorium excludes two existing state leases and does not apply to federal or private lands, where four proposed mining projects remain in early development with a low probability of completion.

Local opposition continues to stall remaining terrestrial exploration. Following a permit request by Gamma Resources to drill up to 12 exploratory boreholes near Canjilon, three New Mexico congressional delegates endorsed federal legislation to prohibit uranium mining throughout the Chama Basin Watershed.

Separately, NovaCore Exploration faces coordinated pushback from Catron County residents over its July application to drill 37 boreholes near Datil.

Federal permitting for terrestrial mines currently requires up to 10 years, according to the National Mining Association. Fluxnium executives argue their modular deployment model avoids the extensive capital requirements, permitting delays, and groundwater contamination risks associated with terrestrial extraction.

“The United States imports more than 90 percent of its uranium supply at a time when nuclear power is increasingly seen as a solution to growing demand for electricity driven by economic growth,” Fluxnium CEO Jeff Green said in the official press release. “Fluxnium is developing a new domestic and sustainable supply of uranium, passively adsorbed from seawater on proven offshore infrastructure — at a cost projected to compete with conventional mining, with no tailings or ground water concerns.”

Meanwhile, the federal government is simultaneously attempting to expedite terrestrial mineral development.

The US House of Representatives passed the Protecting Domestic Mining Act of 2025 in early September, aiming to streamline interagency coordination and enforce federal permitting deadlines. The Trump administration has also utilized the FAST-41 process to fast-track critical mineral permits.

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Securities Disclosure: I, Giann Liguid, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.