It’s possible that I shall make an ass of myself. But in that case one can always get out of it with a little dialectic. I have, of course, so worded my proposition as to be right either way (K.Marx, Letter to F.Engels on the Indian Mutiny)
Wednesday, January 21, 2026
US proposed SECURE Act aims to offset China’s grip on critical minerals
US lawmakers last week introduced bipartisan legislation to create a new authority for a $2.5 billion critical minerals stockpile, aiming to counter China’s dominance of global supply chains.
The proposed Securing Essential and Critical US Resources and Elements (SECURE) Minerals Act would establish a Strategic Resilience Reserve (SRR) to support domestic production and processing of minerals vital to electrification, clean energy and national defense.
China currently controls over 60% of the world’s mined rare earths and about 90% of their processing. The Asian nation also holds a major share of the refined production of lithium, graphite and cobalt, all minerals key to electrification, clean energy and national defense.
For lithium, China has created a huge glut that has driven down prices globally, rendering many projects in the West unprofitable. In the rare earth sector, it deployed export curbs that have also resulted in high prices.
US Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Todd Young (R-IN), alongside Representatives Rob Wittman (R-VA-01) and John Moolenaar (R-MI-02), introduced new legislation to support domestic supply chains to meet national and economic security needs through the creation of a new SRR.
The legislation has been introduced on a bicameral and bipartisan basis, reflecting early alignment across chambers and parties.
Critical minerals have emerged as a key chokepoint in the global economy, the lawmakers said.
The SECURE Act would establish the SRR in an independent government corporation, run by a seven-member board appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate.
“China’s global dominance of critical minerals supply chains gives it significant leverage and leaves the US vulnerable to economic coercion. This bipartisan legislation is a historic investment in making the US economy more resilient and supporting good-paying jobs in key sectors like aerospace, autos and technology,” Senator Shaheen said in a news release.
“Delivering much-needed stability to the market, providing targeted investments and stockpiling key inputs will help insulate the US from foreign threats and will provide a significant, and cost effective, boost to the US economy.”
Path to law
Sahar Hafeez, senior counsel, international trade and national security matters at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman’s Washington DC office told MINING.COM such legislation takes time and will involve subsequent edits and versions on the path to being passed into law.
“We understand that the House Committee on Natural Resources is looking to schedule a mark-up and that the Senate is aiming for including this as part of the NDAA (US National Defense Authorization Act),” Hafeez said in an email.
The bill establishes new statutory authority to create a $2.5 billion strategic reserve, rather than relying on pre-existing stockpiling frameworks. It does not amend legacy statutes such as the Strategic and Critical Materials Stock Piling Act of 1939, she confirmed.
“From a national security and supply-chain resilience perspective, the legislation prioritizes domestic projects and US-based supply chains, as well as initiatives that incorporate recycling and unconventional feedstocks,” Hafeez said.
“It also targets materials where US import dependence is effectively 100%, which could potentially include projects from foreign sources, particularly where DFC (Development Finance Corporation) authorities are leveraged. The legislation also provides that partner governments, upon approval by the Reserve, can make capital contributions for financing and acquiring for the Reserve.”
As Congress debates the details, the SECURE Act signals growing urgency in Washington to address mineral supply vulnerabilities.
Whether through this bill or a revised successor, lawmakers appear increasingly aligned on one point: securing critical minerals will remain a central pillar of US economic and security policy in the years ahead.
Critical minerals firm weighs plan to build US rare earth plant
Atlantic Strategic Minerals’ mineral processing facilities in Virginia. Image: ASM.
Atlantic Strategic Minerals, a small US mining company, is considering building a rare earths plant in a bid to join America’s push for domestic production of key materials.
The facility would be at the company’s operations in Stoney Creek, Virginia, about 150 miles from Washington, DC, where it already produces some critical minerals and rare earth elements as a byproduct, according to Michael Scherb, chief executive officer of Appian Capital Advisory, which owns Atlantic Strategic Minerals.
“We’re debating now what we should do with the byproduct,” Scherb said Tuesday in an interview. “You can separate it and you can produce rare earths, but you need a refining facility.”
The decision follows the Trump administration’s push to loosen China’s grip on rare earth minerals, which are essential for products ranging from smartphones and electric vehicles to fighter jets. China controls the vast majority of the world’s rare earth mining and processing capacity, leaving US industries exposed to potential supply shocks.
Appian, which has about $5 billion of assets under management, is one of a few investment firms dedicated to the mining sector, alongside the likes of Orion Resource Partners and Resource Capital Funds. Atlantic Strategic Minerals started commercial operations in June, where it now produces niche minerals like ilmenite — a primary material used in titanium — and zircon, a source for the metal zirconium, which is used in nuclear reactors.
Scherb said Appian has held conversations with the White House seeking government support for the plant, which he estimated would cost under $100 million to build. The firm also is looking at processing domestic and international materials from third—party companies beyond its own operations, including Appian-owned Gippsland Critical Minerals, which has a rare earths project in Australia.
Companies have announced a flurry of investment plans for critical mineral projects in the US in light of President Donald Trump’s efforts to secure domestic supplies. Korea Zinc Co. — one of the world’s largest zinc processors — is planning a $7.4 billion smelter in Tennessee, while MP Materials Corp. is building a rare earths separation plan in California.\
Atlantic Strategic Minerals’ facility would be considerably smaller but easier to achieve, said Scherb.
“These grand, huge mega-projects — you don’t need to pursue those,” he said. “You can actually look at more cost-effective, strategic ways to get supply out, whether it be through recycling or better use of the byproduct that comes out of operations like these.”
(By Jacob Lorinc)
Energy Fuels to buy Australian Strategic Materials in $300M deal
ASM’s Korean metals plant. Credit: Australian Strategic Materials
US uranium producer Energy Fuels has agreed to pay a large premium for Australian Strategic Materials (ASM), as the United States bolsters efforts to secure Western supply chains for rare earth elements.
Energy Fuels will acquire the rare earths firm in a deal valuing the Australian firm’s equity at A$447 million ($300.9 million), the two parties said in separate statements on Wednesday.
The deal, which represents a 121% premium on ASM’s close from January 20, sent shares of the Australian producer soaring as much as 126% to A$1.63.
The buyout is significant for the US, which is looking to lock in Western supply for the metals used in applications such as wind farms, mobile phones and missiles. Australia and the US signed a framework agreement for cooperation around critical minerals including rare earths last year, each pledging to invest $1 billion.
That investment, which will cut the risk for other stakeholders, is part of a suite of government policies that are expected to spur more sector consolidation, said law firm White and Case in a report this week.
“We are already seeing it (consolidation), and we’re going to continue to see it, because everyone recognizes that…rapid establishment of the supply chain you are going to need multiple parties who are working together,” ASM CEO Rowena Smith told Reuters in an interview.
Under the deal, shareholders of ASM would receive 0.053 Energy Fuels shares for each ASM share held, along with a special dividend of up to A$0.13 per ASM share, representing a total implied value of A$1.60 per ASM share.
ASM’s board has unanimously recommended that ASM shareholders vote in favour of the transaction in the absence of a superior proposal, it said.
Upon completion, the transaction will combine ASM’s operating Korean metalization plant and its planned American metals plant with Energy Fuels’ existing rare earth oxide production at its White Mesa Mill in Utah.
It will also have a number of development projects. In Australia that will include ASM’s Dubbo rare earths project in New South Wales, the Donald project in Victoria, as well as the Vara Mada project in Madagascar and the Bahia project in Brazil.
They are all intended to supply feed materials for the planned expansion of the company’s White Mesa Mill to produce 6,000 tonnes per annum (tpa) neodymium-praseodymium (NdPr), 240 tpa dysprosium, and 66 tpa terbium oxides.
Prices of rare earths have been rising as Western countries scramble to reduce dependence on China. In response, Australia has been considering setting a price floor and new international partnerships to support rare earths projects and build alternative supplies.
Australia’s Lynas Rare Earths is the world’s largest rare earths producer outside China. It produced 10,462 tons of rare earth oxides in the 2025 financial year.
($1 = 1.4857 Australian dollars)
(By Himanshi Akhand and Melanie Burton; Editing by Alan Barona, Chris Reese and Jacqueline Wong)
Lynas Rare Earths’ quarterly revenue surges as higher prices offset lower production
Lynas’ rare earths come from the Mount Weld mine in Western Australia. (Image courtesy of Lynas.)
Australia’s Lynas Rare Earths reported a 43% rise in second-quarter revenue on Wednesday, as higher selling prices eclipsed a production shortfall caused by power disruptions at its ore processing plant.
Prices of rare earths have been rising as Western countries scramble to reduce dependence on China. In response, Australia has been mulling a price floor and new international partnerships to support rare earth projects and build alternative supplies.
Lynas, the world’s largest producer of rare earths outside China, said the selling prices rose in tandem with higher benchmark prices for the elements.
The average selling price for Lynas’ product range was A$85.6 per kilogram during the quarter, higher than A$49.2 per kg a year ago.
The upbeat sentiment has also spilled over to January, Lynas said in its statement.
Rare earth elements are crucial for green-energy applications and are used in electric vehicles and smartphones, among other applications.
The company’s total rare earth oxide output was 2,382 metric tons, lower than 3,993 metric tons in the previous quarter, as power outages at its Kalgoorlie facility in Western Australia hampered production.
Last year, the firm said there had been a substantial rise in power supply disruptions at the facility, with outages in November resulting in a significant loss in mixed rare earth carbonate (MREC) production.
The Perth-headquartered firm said it had been working to secure off-grid solutions to ensure power stability at the facility.
The Kalgoorlie plant produces MREC, which is later processed into high-purity rare earth oxides.
Lynas posted sales revenue of A$201.9 million ($135.98 million) for the quarter ended December 31, compared with A$141.2 million a year ago.
($1 = 1.4848 Australian dollars)
(By Rajasik Mukherjee and Jasmeen Ara Shaikh; Editing by Sahal Muhammed)
Lynas CEO says government policies are improving rare earths market
Amanda Lacaze, CEO of Lynas Rare Earths. (Image: Kristie Batten | MINING.COM.)
Government policies around floor prices for rare earths have improved the function of the market and helped lift prices to sustainable levels, Amanda Lacaze, the CEO of Lynas Rare Earths said on Wednesday.
Lacaze made the comments as the world’s top rare earths producer outside China reported lower production but higher revenue from sales of the materials critical for green-energy infrastructure, electric vehicles, smartphones and defence.
Government policy is seen as a key driver of critical minerals markets this year, as nations seek to secure long-term supply separate from top producer China, and Lacaze’s comments highlight that policy action is having its intended effect.
Additionally, the easing of China’s export controls has reduced a glut there, boosting the domestic Chinese benchmark against which Lynas sells much of its supply, she said in a call with analysts after Lynas released its second-quarter results.
“I think everyone understands that the market settings remain positive, and in fact, in some ways, they’ve even become more positive during January,” Lacaze said.
“(The) price continues to strengthen, and frankly, geopolitics continue to be our friend, although we are yet to finalize various agreements with governments, the policies which have been particularly implemented by the US government have already fostered more functional market dynamics.”
Lacaze pointed specifically to the US government’s support of minimum prices for producer MP Materials and related discussions about support for floor prices between governments including Australia and the world’s top seven most advanced economies.
Prices should reflect costs
The floor price policy discussions are the most important talks Lynas is having with governments, she said. They are crucial for the company to sell rare earths at a level competitive with its lower-cost Chinese rivals.
“We don’t need governments to be buying our product. We need customers to be buying our product, and we need those customers to buy our product at prices that properly reflect the cost of doing business,” she said.
Lynas reported a 43% rise in second-quarter revenue on Wednesday as the higher selling prices eclipsed a production shortfall caused by power disruptions at its ore processing plant in Western Australia. Shares rallied 6%.
The average selling price for Lynas’ product range was A$85.60 ($57.69) per kg during the quarter, higher than A$49.20 per kg a year ago.
The upbeat price sentiment has also spilled over to January, Lynas said in a statement announcing the earnings.
The company’s total rare earth oxide output was 2,382 metric tons, lower than the 3,993 tons produced in the previous quarter, as power outages at its Kalgoorlie facility hampered production.
Last year, Lynas said there had been an increase in power supply disruptions at Kalgoorlie, with outages in November causing significant losses in mixed rare earth carbonate (MREC) production. The MREC from Kalgoorlie is later processed into high-purity rare earth oxides.
The Perth-headquartered firm said it had been working to secure off-grid solutions to ensure power stability at the facility, including considering using diesel fuel. While some power issues have been rectified, they are ongoing, said Lacaze, who is retiring after 10 years as CEO.
“As recently as yesterday, we had two significant power outages,” she said.
Lynas posted sales revenue of A$201.9 million ($136.08 million) for the quarter ended December 31, compared with A$141.2 million a year ago.
($1 = 1.4837 Australian dollars)
(By Rajasik Mukherjee and Jasmeen Ara Shaikh; Editing by Sahal Muhammed and Christian Schmollinger)
Atlantic Strategic Minerals’ mineral processing facilities in Virginia. Image: ASM.
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