The US government plans to take more equity stakes in critical minerals companies, a White House official said Thursday, calling the once-rare move necessary to counter China’s dominance in the raw materials used in everything from semiconductors to MRI machines…Critical minerals such as gallium and cobalt are used in products ranging from iPhones to industrial magnets. They’re also vital for defense systems including missile guidance, radar and jet engines, as well as batteries and other technologies needed to cut carbon pollution. Over the past year, the Trump administration has spent over $1 billion to take stakes in critical minerals and mining companies, often sending the company’s stock prices soaring…Among the deals are $400 million in exchange for a 15% stake in MP Materials Corp., which was announced in July, $670 million in exchange for a stake in magnet producer Vulcan Elements Inc., and $35.6 million for a 10% stake in Canadian minerals explorer Trilogy Metals Inc. The Trump administration announced in September it was acquiring a stake in Lithium Americas Corp., which is developing the largest lithium deposit in the country, as part of a deal to restructure an existing $2.23 billion loan the Canadian company held with the Energy Department…“We’re literally buying equity, getting equity in companies to give the backing of the US, because that’s the only way we’re going to catch up with China on these things,” Agen said in his remarks at the American Growth Summit, which was sponsored by companies such as Citigroup Inc. and NVIDIA Corporation. 

The U.S. Defense Logistics Agency still intends to purchase cobalt for the National Defense Stockpile but is reassessing its strategy and has no target date for reissuing the tender, a DLA spokesperson told Reuters on Thursday…Any purchases of cobalt are likely to cost the agency a lot more as prices have already risen 50% since the original tender was launched in August…This is the DLA's first cobalt stockpiling effort in more than three decades. The United States needs cobalt to safeguard national security and industrial resilience as competition for strategic minerals intensifies around the world…The U.S. is also aiming to reduce reliance on China, which dominates processing of the metal used to make missiles, aerospace parts, magnets for communication and radar and guidance systems…"DLA is currently reevaluating its acquisition strategy for cobalt. The requirement is still valid, and DLA still intends to purchase the material for the National Defense Stockpile," the DLA spokesperson said. "At this time, the agency does not have a target date for reissuance of the solicitation."…Cobalt prices are currently trading around $24 a lb or $52,910 a metric ton, compared with $16 a lb or $35,275 a ton in August.

The US is in talks to provide more than $1 billion for two critical minerals and railway projects in central Africa as it seeks to secure supplies deemed crucial for national security…The US International Development Finance Corp. plans to support a new copper and cobalt venture between the Democratic Republic of Congo’s Gecamines SA and Mercuria Energy Trading, as well as a rail project linking Congo and other central and southern African nations to Angola’s coast…“These projects will help to secure vital supply chains, expand private sector opportunity, and strengthen America’s global competitiveness, while supporting peace, prosperity, and dignity in central Africa,” DFC Chief Executive Officer Ben Black said in a statement…President Donald Trump has made securing minerals that are crucial for military and high-tech applications one of his priorities, with several deals with African countries emerging. Chinese companies dominate the mining and processing of many of these metals, and Washington is looking to loosen the Asian powerhouse’s stranglehold over the trade…“The partnership would grant US end users a right of first refusal, providing US industries with access to critical minerals essential for economic growth and competitiveness,” Gecamines said about the possible DFC investment in an emailed statement.

Washington must move even faster to bolster critical minerals projects and offset Beijing's grip on the world's supply of the building blocks for electronics, weapons and a range of other goods, three U.S. mining and refining executives said on Thursday…The push underscores how Washington's surging support this year for the sector - including taking stakes in mining companies and guaranteeing a price floor for the only U.S. rare earths mine - is falling short of what industry leaders say is needed amid intense Chinese competition…Executives from Perpetua Resources , American Rare Earths and Westwin Elements told the Reuters NEXT conference in New York that the U.S. government should release a comprehensive minerals plan, pressure Indonesia to trim nickel production, and speed up the time for the U.S. Export-Import Bank and other agencies to approve loan funding, among other steps…"Companies are getting some solutions, but what's not happening right now is a comprehensive strategy or road map," said Lyon…Both Perpetua and Westwin have applied for funding from the U.S. Export-Import Bank (ExIm), which acts as the U.S. government's export credit agency…Long said Washington must move faster to approve those loans, which often have terms more attractive than with private lenders and at higher amounts. Perpetua, for instance, has asked for $1.8 billion in government loans.