NMA Mining Minute

Next Wednesday, the House Select Committee on China will hold a hearing on China's Predatory Pricing, exploring How the Chinese Communist Party Manipulates Global Mineral Prices to Maintain Its Global minerals Dominance. Among those testifying will be Jonathan Evans, Chief Executive Officer of Lithium Americas. We'll certainly be tuning in.   In industry news, Ivanhoe Electric has secured a $200 m...

The longest government shutdown in history is now in the rear view mirror, Congress is back and the government is back in business. And while we're hoping that this means the Congress will return to addressing key priorities—permitting reform among them--the deal only funds the government until January 30, so we could be right back here in a little over two months. A 50-page report from the bipart...

It's an exciting day here in Washington. The House returns to DC for a vote that could, finally, end the government shutdown. And it's another day, another coal plant that's needed to keep the lights on. Earlier this week, Xcel Energy joined the Colorado Energy Office to file a petition asking state utility regulators to extend the lifespan of the Comanche 2 coal power plant, which is currently sc...

When it comes to the government shutdown, there's a light at the end of the tunnel – let's hope it's not a train. The Senate worked through the weekend to come up with a compromise deal that would guarantee federal workers back pay from the shutdown, and bring some who were laid off back to work, under a plan that would keep most agencies funded through January. Although it seems there will be eno...

Acknowledging the essential role mined materials play in national security, economic stability and supply chain resilience, yesterday the USGS announced that it was expanding its so-called list of Critical Minerals, adding minerals such as boron, copper, metallurgical coal, phosphate, silver and uranium. The move is a smart one by the administration, but here at the National Mining Association, we...

As perhaps a sign of things to come with overseas producers, The Financial Times reports Vedanta Resources is shifting ownership of its Zambian copper operations into a U.S.‐based subsidiary, CopperTech Metals. A significant driver of the move: an effort to tap U.S. financing and benefit from Trump administration efforts to secure mineral supply chains. And in Colorado, debate is heating up over t...

The results are in. Democrats running on affordability and energy politics won big on Election Day across several states. Politico reports yesterday's success all but ensures next year's midterms will have Democrats' message on high electricity prices front and center. Looking north, Canada's government has released its new federal budget, and mining is in the spotlight. The proposed budget includ...

The Trump administration says it's assembling a coalition of allies and partners to trade critical minerals and buffer Beijing's control of global supply chains. "In the last few weeks, the United States has announced a framework for creating a club of nations to be able to trade, refine and process critical minerals," Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said Monday in Abu Dhabi. And the Trump administ...

I'm Ashley Burke with The National Mining Association. And you're watching NMA TV.   This is a Mining Minute special.  The National Mining Association each year honors outstanding achievements in mine safety with something called the Sentinels of Safety Awards.   The Sentinels of Safety awards began back in 1923 with then Commerce Secretary Herbert Hoover,  who was himself a former mining engineer...

President Trump says, when it comes to China, we've got a deal. After a meeting in South Korea between Presidents Trump and Xi, Trump says China committed to a one‑year agreement to maintain rare‑earth exports to the world, including the U.S. It's unclear if and when previously existing restrictions will be lifted. This week mining and construction equipment manufacturer Caterpillar's shares soare...

In global trade news, the US and Japan have a trade deal and, with it, Japan has committed to identify and invest in projects to mine and refine rare earths, minerals and other metals. Not coincidentally, the U.S.-Japan agreement signed Tuesday comes just days before President Trump is expected to meet with Chinese President Xi in South Korea on Thursday. Looking at the markets, copper prices on t...

Perpetua Resources yesterday announced that the Company has entered into agreements to raise $255 million in equity investments from Agnico Eagle Mines Limited and JPMorganChase. The announcement comes days after Perpetua broke ground on the Stibnite Gold Project in central Idaho, which, once in production, will be the only domestic reserve of antimony. The Wall Street Journal reports that rare ea...

It has become hard to overstate the impact AI and data centers are having on the power sector. This is an industrial revolution on an extraordinary scale. And we're all part of it. If you use one of these – if you're creating and using data – you're, in fact, driving it. The videos, posts and AI chatbots we now all interact with require immense physical infrastructure—infrastructure that uses incr...

Last night the National Mining Association honored outstanding achievements in mine safety with the Sentinels of Safety Awards. The Sentinels Award recognizes coal and mineral mining operations in 10 categories for recording the most hours in a calendar year without a single lost-time injury. A minimum of 4,000 hours is required for award consideration. Twenty American mining operations – six coal...

Following on the heels of the US-Australia minerals agreement, The US International Development Finance Corp. has now established a new fund to invest in critical minerals alongside Orion Resource Partners and Abu Dhabi's ADQ, as the Trump administration seeks to challenge China's mineral dominance. Called the Orion Critical Mineral Consortium, the three partners have made initial capital commitme...

Caterpillar has announced a $725 million expansion of its large engine facility in Indiana,  one of the company's biggest manufacturing investments. Caterpillar aims to meet growing global mining, construction and energy demand driven by artificial intelligence, data centers and other critical infrastructure. The company also designated Indiana as one of the first states to benefit from its five-y...

The United States and Australia agreed yesterday to jointly invest at least $2 billion into critical-minerals projects as part of the countries' efforts to reduce reliance on China. The Export-Import Bank is issuing seven Letters of Interest for more than $2.2 billion in financing to advance critical minerals and supply-chain security projects between both countries. Domestic U.S. firms and mines...

The Wall Street Journal has a piece tracing just how China secured such a tight grasp on the world's rare-earth markets, and why it's so hard for other countries to counter. The piece looks at its efforts since the early 1990s to build a minerals empire, which has left it holding control over supply chains for cars, advanced energy technologies and defense systems. The New York Times looks at how...

The Wall Street Journal has an editorial on efforts to counter China's weaponization of rare-earth minerals. The piece calls China's stranglehold on minerals supply chains "a serious problem." Reuters reports that mineral mining companies are boosting their lobbying efforts in Washington, driven by a desire of a piece of the government investments that the Trump administration has announced, and h...

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC yesterday that the Trump administration will set price floors across a range of industries including mining to combat market manipulation by China. Bessent also said the US will set up a strategic mineral reserve and that JPMorgan Chase is interested in working with the Trump administration to make that happen.  And because these days everyone is watching...

It seems everyone is talking about China's latest rare earth restrictions. Automotive industry groups are warning of supply chain chaos. Virtually every country and region—from Japan to Australia, the EU to India—is looking at its own supply chains and alternative sourcing. And rare earths are seen as China's ultimate trump card when negotiating its trade deal with the U.S. Treasury Secretary Scot...

JPMorgan Chase said Monday that it will invest $10 billion in companies that are critical to U.S. national security. The bank is committed to facilitating $1.5 trillion in investments for companies deemed "critical to national economic security and resiliency" over the next 10 years, an amount that includes the $10 billion of its own capital as it follows the US government's lead and pursues stake...

On average, people spend about one-third of their lives at work. That makes your choice of a career an incredibly important part of your life. In this special edition of the NMA's Mining Minute, we're going to look at one of the best careers you can choose, a career in mining. The current job market for recent college grads in 2025 so far is one of the most challenging in the last decade. Accordin...

The Chinese government today announced that it is raising the stakes again on rare earths, escalating its restrictions on exports of rare earth metals and restricting exports of many kinds of equipment needed to manufacture batteries for electric cars.  The new rules will require government permission for the export of technology used to mine, process or recycle rare-earth minerals or make magnets...

Well, if your word is as good as gold, it's never been worth more. Gold prices hit $4,000 an ounce for the first time yesterday with investors looking for stability amidst geopolitical, trade and economic turmoil, a weaker dollar, and persistent inflation. And thus far this morning, it continues to climb with central banks and retail investors continuing to buy gold more than ever before. The Sena...