President Donald Trump announced $3 billion in new federal investment in critical minerals and battery projects on Friday, telling more than 200 mining executives, educators, and investors at a State Department roundtable that the US is "reclaiming America's rightful place as the minerals superpower of the world."
The push builds on an aggressive year of mineral-security moves, including a domestic rare-earth mine reopening after more than seven decades and construction of the first new US aluminum smelter since 1980. Trump said the government would back a mine-to-magnet supply chain designed to reduce dependence on China, even as a recent trade truce has temporarily eased Chinese export restrictions on rare earths and magnets.
Among the highlighted projects: the Export-Import Bank is working to arrange over $1 billion in financing for Ivanhoe Electric's Santa Cruz copper project in Arizona, alongside support for a graphite mine in Alabama and a boron facility in California. The administration also pledged roughly $180 million for mining education, aiming to train a new generation of American miners as China's network of mining universities remains a competitive edge in the sector.
The announcement adds to the Pentagon-led effort that began with a $400 million equity stake in MP Materials and has since grown into a broader industrial policy, including the previously launched $12 billion "Project Vault" strategic minerals stockpile backed by companies like GM, Boeing, and Google. For more on how critical minerals shape global supply chains, see the US Geological Survey's National Minerals Information Center.
Minerals policy remains a flashpoint in US-China relations, with China controlling much of the world's mining, refining, and trade in materials used for weapons, semiconductors, and renewable energy — meaning this latest funding round is unlikely to be the administration's last move in the space.