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China isn’t getting rid of its controls over rare earths, despite trade truce with US – by Nectar Gan (CNN.com – May 20, 2025)

https://www.cnn.com/

Despite a 90-day truce in its trade war with the United States, China appears to be maintaining tight control over its rare earth exports – preserving a key source of leverage in future negotiations amid intensifying strategic rivalry with Washington.

As part of last week’s trade agreement in Geneva to temporarily roll back tariffs, China pledged to suspend or remove the “non-tariff” countermeasures it imposed on the US since April 2. That has left businesses scrambling to find out whether that promise applies to China’s export controls on seven rare earth minerals and associated products, which were imposed on April 4 as part of its retaliation against US President Donald Trump’s “reciprocal” tariffs on Chinese goods.

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Lithium Triangle region remains strategic amid uncertainties and trade disputes – by Anne Barbosa (S&P Global – May 20, 2025)

https://www.spglobal.com/

Despite the recent tariff agreement between China and the United States, the ongoing trade dispute continues to create global uncertainties and may affect tax revenue and employment in the Lithium Triangle of Argentina, Chile and Bolivia. However, it also presents opportunities, specialists told Platts, part of S&P Global Commodity Insights.

Manuel Viera Flores, president of the Chilean Mining Chamber, said in a recent interview that although some minerals are currently tariff-free, “We must be cautious about what may come and be prepared for it, as any tax increase is negative for the development of various economic activities.”

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Doug Ford government touts $3B for Indigenous loans a day before hearings on the controversial bill fast-tracking mining projects – by Robert Benzie (Toronto Star – May 21, 2025)

https://www.thestar.com/

With legislative hearings on Bill 5, the “Protect Ontario by Unleashing Our Economy Act,” beginning Thursday at Queen’s Park, Premier Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservatives appear mindful it is contentious.

Amid concerns from some Indigenous groups over controversial legislation to fast-track mining projects, the province has tripled to $3 billion loans for First Nations partnerships. With legislative hearings on Bill 5, the “Protect Ontario by Unleashing Our Economy Act,” beginning Thursday at Queen’s Park, Premier Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservatives appear mindful it is contentious.

Ahead of criticism anticipated from those testifying at the all-party committee studying the bill — and protests planned outside the legislature — the Tories were touting their efforts for First Nations.

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Platinum, manganese, iron-ore, coal, chrome ore deemed ‘high-critical minerals’ for South Africa – by Darren Parker (Mining Weekly – May 20, 2025)

https://www.miningweekly.com/

Whereas every mineral is found to be critical for various reasons, the Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources’ (DMPR’s) Critical Minerals and Metals Strategy has identified platinum, manganese, iron-ore, coal and chrome ore as “high-critical minerals” for South Africa, based on their criticality.

In a briefing regarding Cabinet’s approval of the strategy, as well as the approval for the publication of the Mineral Resources Development Bill (MRDB) of 2025 for public comment, Mineral and Petroleum Resources Minister Gwede Mantashe explained that the drafting of the strategy had started with adopting a robust methodology to determine the aspect of criticality of minerals.

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Assessing Indonesia’s Strategic Value for U.S. Battery Ambitions – by Anna Broughel and Selma Khalil (National Interest – May 20, 2025)

https://nationalinterest.org/

Indonesia’s strategic value means that it can position itself as a one-stop source from mine to precursor chemicals.

Lacking sufficient domestic extraction and processing capacity for many critical minerals, the United States faces an urgent need to secure reliable battery supply chains. One promising pathway is through a deeper partnership with a nation that has quietly emerged as central to the future of battery technology: Indonesia.

The country holds the world’s largest nickel reserves and, in recent years, has become the largest producer of nickel worldwide, transforming from a raw nickel exporter into a major processing and manufacturing hub.

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Canada in talks with U.S. about ‘Golden Dome’ defence system – by Adrian Morrow (Globe and Mail – May 21, 2025)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Canada is in talks with the U.S. over President Donald Trump’s proposed “Golden Dome” missile defence system even as the two countries are locked in a bruising trade war and Prime Minister Mark Carney is promising to lessen Ottawa’s dependence on Washington.

At a White House event to tout US$25-billion in prospective funding for the system, which would expand the U.S.’s defences against missile and drone attacks, Mr. Trump said that Canada had asked to join.

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Energy storage boom drives battery shift, leaving nickel, cobalt behind – by Eric Onstad (Reuters – May 21, 2025)

https://www.reuters.com/

When Fidra Energy acquired a 55-acre (22-hectare) patch of northern England countryside in 2023, its plan to transform it into a 1.45 gigawatt energy storage facility – Europe’s largest once completed – was far from a done deal.

“We were struggling to make the economics work,” Chris Elder, the Edinburgh-based company’s CEO, told Reuters. But that was before the lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries being used in the project, which were already recording significant improvements in performance, roughly halved in cost in a period of just 18 months. Fidra now plans to start installing battery units for its 600-million pound ($800-million) Thorpe Marsh project next year.

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Saskatchewan’s first lithium brine project receives initial approval – by Drew Postey (CTV News Regina – May 21, 2025)

https://www.ctvnews.ca/

Saskatchewan has granted initial approval for the province’s first lithium brine project. The project will be run by Arizona Lithium in Saskatchewan’s southeast. Known as the Prairie Lithium Brine Project, the company says a “vast untapped lithium brine resource” is located in the Duperow Formation of Saskatchewan’s Williston Basin.

According to the company, the project will utilize conventional oil and gas drilling methods to access lithium-rich brine more than two kilometres underground.

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Report: World’s supply of critical minerals for clean energy is concentrated in fewer countries – by David McHugh and Alexa St. John (Associated Press – May 21, 2025)

https://apnews.com/

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — The world’s sources of critical minerals are increasingly concentrated in just a few countries, most notably China, leaving the global economy vulnerable to supply cutoffs that could disrupt industry and hit consumers with higher prices, a report said Wednesday.

The Paris-based International Energy Agency’s report looked at the availability of minerals and metals that may be small in quantity — but large in impact when it comes to shifting the economy away from fossil fuels toward electricity and renewable energy.

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EU goes hunting for Central Asia’s mineral riches at Samarkand summit – by Emma Collet (Euractiv.com – April 3, 2025)

https://www.euractiv.com/

Central Asia could become something like the El Dorado of European dreams.

SAMARKAND, UZBEKISTAN – With access to rare metals and critical minerals on their minds, a number of top EU leaders are travelling to Samarkand to meet with Central Asian presidents in a glittering palace on the outskirts of this ancient crossroads city.

Central Asian leaders invited the European Union with a mix of enthusiasm and caution to gather on Thursday and Friday in Samarkand, situated along the historic Silk Road trade routes which now serves as Uzbekistan’s host city for major diplomatic meetings

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NEWS RELEASE: Province Investing $3.1 Billion to Support Indigenous Partnership in Critical Mineral Development (Ontario Government – May 21, 2025)

Made-in-Ontario critical mineral supply chain will protect workers and communities across the province

TORONTO — As part of the government’s plan to protect Ontario by building a more competitive, resilient and self-reliant economy, the province is supporting the creation of a made-in-Ontario critical minerals supply chain that includes new resources and opportunities for Indigenous equity partnerships. These measures include nearly $3.1 billion in loans, grants and scholarships that would support Indigenous participation, partnership and ownership in Ontario’s critical mineral supply chain.

“Ontario’s vast supply of critical minerals are at the heart of our plan to protect Ontario,” said Peter Bethlenfalvy, Minister of Finance. “By investing to unlock and process these minerals here in Ontario in partnership with Indigenous communities, we can make Ontario the top global hub of critical mineral development and protect our economy, workers and communities for decades to come.”

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Critical Mineral Resource Nationalism: What It Means for China and the Global South – by Obert Bore (China Global South.com – May 20, 2025)

https://chinaglobalsouth.com/

Driven by the accelerating global energy transition, resource-rich countries are actively asserting greater control over their critical minerals—lithium, cobalt, nickel, graphite, and rare earths—through a policy shift known as resource nationalism.

While the framing of resource nationalism came from global north countries that dislike policies by governments in the global south to move up the value chain, this movement is reshaping global supply chains and creating new geopolitical dynamics, particularly in relation to China, which dominates much of the critical minerals value chain.

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Orano considering sale of Niger uranium assets (Mining Technology – May 19, 2025)

https://www.mining-technology.com/

The company operates three mines in Niger through a JV with the government, which seized power in a coup in 2023.

Orano, a French state-owned nuclear fuel company, is considering selling its uranium assets in Niger following a collapse in relations with the country’s military-led government, reported the Financial Times, citing people with knowledge of the matter.

The company operates three mines in Niger through a joint venture (JV) with the government, which seized power in a coup in 2023. Orano has faced challenges in the region, including the arbitrary arrest, illegal detention and unjust confiscation of property involving its staff and assets.

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Mining and a healthy environment — we can have both in Minnesota – by Julie C. Lucas (MinnPost.com – May 18, 2025)

MinnPost – Nonprofit, independent journalism. Supported by readers.MinnPost –

Julie C. Lucas is the executive director of MiningMinnesota.

It’s understandable why there’s concern about copper-nickel mining upstream from the BWCA, but let’s have a fact-based conversation.

The postcard illustrating this commentary is from the 1940s and sums up the Iron Range, the Minnesota region I call home. At one time, the Hull Rust Mahoning Mine in Hibbing was the world’s largest iron ore producing mine.

Now, it’s one portion of a substantially larger mining operation that produces needed iron ore for our domestic steel industry, as it has since the first hematite mine opened at that site in 1895. Along the Mesabi Iron Range, we have several operating taconite mines and, just outside their gates, we have “shimmering waters” just as we did in the 1940s.

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Scientists Found a Massive Copper Deposit That Could Change the Future of Energy – by Darren Orf (Popular Mechanics – May 19, 2025)

https://www.popularmechanics.com/

Located along the border of Chile and Argentina, the Filo del Sol copper deposit has been under investigation for years for potentially being one of the largest copper deposits in the world. And that makes sense, considering this deposit is nestled along the Atacama Desert—long known for its immense copper reserves due to its location in the Andes and its placement within the eastern portion of the Ring of Fire.

However, a new initial mineral resource estimate completed earlier this month suggests that the companies in charge of mining this area—the U.S.-based Lundin Mining and BHP—may have stumbled upon five times more metal than they bargained for. According to a statement from Lundin Mining, the new assessment estimates the presence of up to 13 million tonnes of copper, 907,000 kilograms (32 million ounces) of gold, and 18.6 million kilograms (659 million ounces) of silver.

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