Two years ago, as China’s dominance in Critical Minerals became evident, the EU and US introduced similar legislations on 50 Critical Materials, backed by billions in investment. The EU focused on the energy transition, while the US emphasized defence, but the goal was the same: to catch up with China.
For context, the global lithium market is valued at $10bn, rare earths at $15bn, copper at $250bn, and oil at $3,000bn annually.
TechMet embodies the push to regain control over Critical Materials. TechMet, originally a joint venture between the Pentagon (via the US International Development Finance Corporation) and Energy & Minerals Group, now attracts Gulf investors. Its mission is to develop a non-China-based supply chain through investments in:
- Lithium: Notable investments in Lithium Americas and other ventures.
- Nickel & Cobalt: Investments in Brazilian Nickel and Canadian projects, along with cobalt through ERG.
- Rare Earths & Other Metals: Investments in Aclara Resources (Chile) for rare earths, MHP (Philippines) for manganese, and projects in Rwanda for tin and tantalum.
- Recycling Initiatives: Projects to recover valuable metals, contributing to a circular economy.
We brought in Richard Tite, Chief Investment Officer of TechMet, to discuss all those matters. How does it work? What are the costs? Can China be countered? Does it succeed?
Are Critical Minerals truly critical? They are certainly polarizing.
