Is the US embarking on a critical mineral spending spree?

The Trump administration is stepping up direct investments in critical mineral projects to bolster US supply security, as part of a broader push by Washington to acquire equity in sectors considered vital to national security.

Last week, the US Department of Energy (DoE) announced it wouldrestructure a $2.3bn loan agreement with Lithium Americas, providing the US government with a 5% equity stake in Lithium Americas and a separate 5% equity stake in the company’s Thacker Pass lithium mining project.

This marked the US government’s second direct equity investment in a domestic critical mineral project this year, followinga landmark deal with rare earths miner MP Materials in July. That agreement included a 10-year price floor offtake contract designed to de-risk the project’s economics and unlock private investment in the broader sector. Benchmark tracked $570m of announced investment in the US rare earths supply chain in Q2 2025, led by public-private sector partnerships.

The Lithium Americas announcement was followed by news this week that the US government has acquired a 10% stake ($35.6m) in Canadian mineral exploration company Trilogy Metals, which is developing the Ambler Metals Project in Alaska. The project includes deposits of copper, cobalt, and other metals. The announcement also confirmed approval for the Ambler Road Project, an industrial-use-only route designed to connect the remote deposit with state highway infrastructure.

Reuters reported late last week that “hundreds of companies” with critical mineral projects had been approached by the US government regarding potential equity investments. This was reported to include Critical Metals Corporation, which recently became the majority owner of the Tanbreez rare earths project in Greenland — though these claims were later denied by US officials.

US eyes public-private fund to tap into global critical mineral supplies

The flurry of announcements and speculation comes amid talks between the US government and Orion Resource Partners, via the US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), to establish a ~$5bn fund for investment in critical mineral mining projects globally, as reported by Bloomberg.

The DFC was established during President Trump’s first term and has served as a key vehicle for US investment in mining projects and associated infrastructure globally, offering credit, equity stakes, and technical assistance grants. This includes direct loans of over $500m to finance the refurbishment of the Lobito Corridor railway to facilitate exports of critical minerals from the Central African copperbelt to markets in the West.

The Trump administration has touted access to mining projects and critical minerals deposits as a prerequisite for potentialsecurity guarantees offered to Ukraineand theDemocratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), as well as in its overtures towards Greenland during its first year in office.

More recently, the US government is said to have offered to purchase equity stakes in Australian critical mineral companies, aiming to tap into the country’s vast resource base as part of wider efforts to reduce strategic supply dependence on China.

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