Point: Trusted Allies Are Key to Advancing Strategic Mineral Reserve
My latest at DC Insider:
There are substantial environmental considerations as well. Responsible mining requires companies that are well governed and properly capitalized so they can restore landscapes, protect water sources, and rehabilitate land after extraction.
Washington has begun to grasp a strategic reality that much of the world has long understood: Critical minerals are the foundation of modern power. From advanced weapons systems to electric vehicles and consumer electronics, the metals that underpin these technologies now carry the same geopolitical weight that oil did in the 20th century.
The U.S. effort to establish a Strategic Critical Minerals Reserve is a welcome development. Project Vault is a public-private supply chain security initiative that establishes the reserve. Financed through a $10 billion lending commitment from the Export-Import Bank and $2 billion from private partners, the project will seek to source and store critical minerals in facilities nationwide. This strategy will provide America with some insulation against supply shocks and geopolitical pressure, especially in an era of intensifying competition with China and instability across global supply chains.
Building a strategic reserve will require more than expanding domestic mining, because domestic production is only part of the solution. The government understands this, which is why it has moved to accelerate permitting and unlock the country’s significant untapped mineral resources. Initiatives such as the government’s FAST-41 transparency process are steps in the right direction. By streamlining regulatory reviews and improving coordination among federal agencies, the process can help move long-stalled projects toward construction and operation.