https://sagire.online/topic/critical-minerals/ Rolling analysis and coverage of geopolitics, energy, security and supply chains. en Thu, 05 Nov 2026 02:48:00 -0300 https://sagire.online/wire/582d972d/https://sagire.online/wire/582d972d/Tue, 03 Nov 2026 21:22:00 -0300A REalloys subsidiary and the United States Department of the Army signed a non-binding term sheet for a heavy rare-earth processing facility at the Tooele Army Depot, in Utah, under a potential 50-year lease with one 25-year renewal — the Army would have a right of first offer on the output, with no obligation to buy. Rare earth processing is treated as a national security vulnerability, with China holding a near-100% global monopoly on dysprosium and terbium. The deal is described as a public-private partnership that could last up to 75 years, under the Army plan, announced in June, to lease parts of its installations to critical-mineral processors.United StatesCritical minerals https://sagire.online/wire/a160f2f4/https://sagire.online/wire/a160f2f4/Tue, 03 Nov 2026 08:23:00 -0300The presidents of South Korea, Lee Jae Myung, and of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, signed in Seoul a memorandum on cooperation in financing nuclear projects to support the participation of South Korean companies in Turkey’s new nuclear power projects. Lee said cooperation on the Sinop plant project, including site assessments and the work of a joint working group, was “progressing smoothly” under the memorandum on nuclear energy cooperation signed in November 2025. The project aims to build Turkey’s second nuclear power plant, on its northern Black Sea coast, with the state-run Korea Electric Power Corporation seeking to participate. The two countries also agreed to deepen defense cooperation by expanding joint production and technological cooperation and jointly exploring opportunities for companies from both countries in third-country markets. The governments also signed an agreement on natural resources and mining and plan an intergovernmental channel to diversify critical mineral supply chains. Bilateral trade reached a record US$ 10.7 billion last year, according to Lee, after surpassing US$ 10 billion for the first time in 2023, a decade after the free trade agreement took effect in 2013.South KoreaTurkeyNuclearDefenseCritical mineralsTrade https://sagire.online/apure-bombardeio-sem-balanco/https://sagire.online/apure-bombardeio-sem-balanco/Sun, 01 Nov 2026 17:28:00 -0300Drones hit a guerrilla camp in southern Apure on October 30 and the army that operates them has published no toll: 19 dead by one count, around 20 by another, nine bodies in a morgue in San Fernando. Five years after an operation that ended with the force withdrawn and 12 soldiers hostage, the target changed, the method changed, and the only record is the one a human rights group wrote.VenezuelaColombiaLatin AmericaCritical mineralsDrug trafficking https://sagire.online/wire/e62f2ca7/https://sagire.online/wire/e62f2ca7/Sun, 01 Nov 2026 02:23:00 -0300The foreign ministers of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) announced plans to provide more than $85 million in technical and financial support to improve access to trusted artificial intelligence across the Indo-Pacific, according to the joint statement from the Atlanta meeting. The text also records a US commitment of $10 million to develop facilities in India and in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries to recover critical minerals from waste, according to The Times of India. India’s external affairs minister, S. Jaishankar, said the Quad must safeguard freedom of choice and secure supply chains and tackle non-market practices, without naming any country, and called for a “more contemporary” agenda for the group, with a practical approach.United StatesIndiaJapanAustraliaMulti-alignmentArtificial intelligenceCritical minerals https://sagire.online/wire/6d2f0e20/https://sagire.online/wire/6d2f0e20/Tue, 27 Oct 2026 12:24:00 -0300Supreme Federal Court (STF) justice Flávio Dino ordered the Federal Police (PF) to open an inquiry into possible foreign interference in Brazil's electoral process, mainly through hidden campaign financing, according to Opera Mundi. The ruling, reported by Agência Brasil, orders investigators to establish the nature of the dealings between representatives of the Rockbridge Network and Tallis Gomes and Pedro Sang, including any link between funds, services or other economically measurable advantages and the electoral campaign. It also calls for an inquiry into a possible link between electoral support and the economic interest of foreign agents in Brazil's rare earths and critical minerals.BrazilElectionsJusticeCritical minerals https://sagire.online/wire/53ddbf2b/https://sagire.online/wire/53ddbf2b/Sun, 25 Oct 2026 22:24:00 -0300On January 1, new Pentagon procurement rules take effect that will restrict the use of Chinese-origin rare earth materials in American weapons systems — a date now less than 75 days away, according to OilPrice.United StatesChinaCritical mineralsDefense https://sagire.online/wire/0153d2f8/https://sagire.online/wire/0153d2f8/Sat, 24 Oct 2026 00:24:00 -0300Chinese researchers mapped the complex geological evolution of Turkey's Kizilcaoren deposit, the country's most significant known rare earth reserve, in a study that dampens expectations over its commercial potential, according to the South China Morning Post. Chief scientist Yang Xiaoyong said that “so far, there is no evidence that Turkey or other countries in the Middle East have substantial rare earth deposits”.TurkeyChinaCritical minerals https://sagire.online/wire/6257aad5/https://sagire.online/wire/6257aad5/Fri, 23 Oct 2026 20:23:00 -0300The US Department of Energy (DOE) announced that Energy Secretary Chris Wright has designated helium as a critical material under the Energy Act of 2020, stating that its unique properties make it indispensable to semiconductor production, with no viable substitutes in many critical applications. According to US News, the designation means more federal financing will be available for helium producers and the government will monitor it more closely.United StatesCritical mineralsSemiconductorsSupply chainsTrade https://sagire.online/wire/c56f623b/https://sagire.online/wire/c56f623b/Thu, 22 Oct 2026 06:23:00 -0300Chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) is exploring alternatives to rare-earth components in factory equipment, according to three people familiar with the matter cited by Reuters, in a text republished by WHBL, aiming to reduce the risk that Beijing's export controls could disrupt operations at plants that make the world's most advanced chips. The discussions remain at an early stage and have not yet resulted in a broad rollout of rare-earth-free equipment, according to two of those people.TaiwanChinaSemiconductorsCritical mineralsSupply chains https://sagire.online/wire/f29d220a/https://sagire.online/wire/f29d220a/Thu, 22 Oct 2026 00:21:00 -0300Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Ontario Premier Doug Ford jointly announced on Wednesday an 8.7-billion Canadian dollar strategic industry support package — about 6.18 billion US dollars — designed to shield workers and businesses from ongoing US tariffs and drive long-term growth, CGTN reported. The federal-provincial plan focuses on Ontario’s steel, automotive and critical minerals sectors. The new strategy builds on federal assistance programs that have already funneled more than 25 billion Canadian dollars to workers and businesses navigating US tariffs.CanadaUnited StatesTradeEconomyCritical minerals https://sagire.online/wire/1f1447c5/https://sagire.online/wire/1f1447c5/Sun, 18 Oct 2026 02:25:00 -0300Chinese Premier Li Qiang called for deeper cooperation with Uzbekistan in areas such as minerals and artificial intelligence, as Beijing vies with Washington for influence in Central Asia, according to the South China Morning Post. Li told Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev on Saturday that Beijing was ready to strengthen strategic communication and expand mutually beneficial cooperation with Uzbekistan.ChinauzbequistaoCentral AsiaCritical mineralsArtificial intelligenceDiplomacy https://sagire.online/wire/aadd941d/https://sagire.online/wire/aadd941d/Wed, 14 Oct 2026 10:24:00 -0300US President Donald Trump said “massive” oil, gas and mineral exploration is set to begin in Greenland early Wednesday, calling the territory “our new and beautiful Greenland”.GreenlandUnited StatesArcticEnergyCritical minerals https://sagire.online/wire/d3226164/https://sagire.online/wire/d3226164/Fri, 09 Oct 2026 20:23:00 -0300Erik Prince signed a wide-ranging contract in late 2024 to provide security and mining services to the government of Democratic Republic of the Congo President Félix Tshisekedi, according to The New York Times.United StatesDemocratic Republic of the CongoAfricaCritical mineralsConflict https://sagire.online/wire/8d68aaf2/https://sagire.online/wire/8d68aaf2/Fri, 09 Oct 2026 10:24:00 -0300The European Union (EU) will support 46 new strategic projects to accelerate supplies of critical raw materials by 2030, including lithium, gallium and rare earths for the auto, defence and renewable energy industries, with a funding cost of €21bn, according to The Guardian. The stated goal is to reduce dependence on China, which controls much of these essential raw materials, and six of the new projects are in France, across 16 countries, with eight for mining, 11 for refining and 19 for recycling, according to Le Monde.European UnionChinaCritical mineralsTradeEconomyFrance https://sagire.online/wire/8f1f57ec/https://sagire.online/wire/8f1f57ec/Thu, 08 Oct 2026 06:23:00 -0300US President Donald Trump urged Chinese leader Xi Jinping to repair ties with Japan and lift Beijing’s export curbs on Tokyo during their September talks in Washington, according to Kyodo News, citing the South China Morning Post. Trump said China’s export restrictions on Japan-bound items, including rare earths, pose a “threat to American industries reliant on Japanese suppliers,” and described the move as “an indirect violation of the US-China trade truce” reached in South Korea in October last year. Xi was “not particularly receptive,” saying Beijing’s dispute with Tokyo should be kept separate from the relationship with Washington, and warned of “the growing risks of Japanese militarism.”United StatesChinaJapanTradeCritical mineralsDiplomacy