The best choice for the key mineral tsar? – Watt?

By Pini Althaus

As the United States competes for basic technological metals, the call to establish a critical mineral tsar (or special envoys or contingents) is rich and obvious, which should be a priority for the Trump administration. We need people with the necessary authority to coordinate the complete body of the U.S. government to ensure lithium, cobalt, tungsten and dozens of key and rare earth elements at home and abroad.

Vice President JD Vance's firm support for domestic manufacturing is the primary option to lead the national strategy as a key mineral tsar and applies the full power of U.S. diplomacy, trade and national security to this past generation's opportunity to develop overseas minerals. From the White House, he could issue a script to promote the industrial base and actively pursue foreign land concessions and processing opportunities for our mining companies.

The U.S.’s progress in establishing a critical mineral supply chain is hampered by several factors, including a lack of coordination among multiple government agencies to produce tangible business results, and a lack of follow-up and result-based follow-up with numerous agreements signed with allies, signed with allies to custody key critical mineral deposits.

The vice president lives uniquely in the executive branch. Cooperation between the Departments of Key Minerals, Defense, State, Commerce, Energy and the Interior can enhance U.S. competitiveness and coordinate domestic policies with diplomatic and trade advocacy. Guiding this inter-agency collaboration can achieve practical results in ensuring and managing critical mineral resources.

Vice President Vance showed a keen understanding of economic and industrial policies, highlighting the need to build a strong domestic manufacturing base. He advocates reducing reliance on foreign supply chains in aligned with the goal of strengthening key U.S. mineral sectors. Vance supports initiatives such as the Onshore Act, a program that aims to strengthen domestic manufacturing and secure supply chains, highlighting his commitment to strengthening national resilience in key industries.

Addressing the global nature of critical mineral supply requires strong international cooperation. Vice President Vance's diplomatic engagement led him to negotiate agreements with allies to build supply chains independent of the adversarial impact. His recent discussion of strategic opportunities in Greenland highlights his aggressive approach to ensuring alternative sources of critical minerals.

Another major issue is that China is pricing potentially critical mineral producers around the world, including in allies such as Australia, as we have witnessed now, when commodity prices fluctuate, key critical mineral projects are being “maintenance and maintenance” while China is exclusively controlled in several critical mineral situations.

China’s dominance in key mineral treatments, including rare earths, presents major challenges, including price manipulation and supply restrictions. To mitigate these risks, it is essential to establish a global key mineral working group that includes key suppliers and consumer countries. Vice President Vance's leadership can facilitate the establishment of such alliances, promote fair trade practices and enhance the resilience of supply chains. This will enable the establishment of a transparent spot market for key minerals.

This is by no means an easy task. For example, many countries such as Japan and South Korea rely heavily on China to supply critical minerals. A global initiative aimed at reducing China's domination over the sector could lead to retaliation in the form of further export bans, such as the recent ban on Chinese tungsten products from the United States

In the U.S., major contractors and large manufacturing OEMs currently procure materials from China may be reluctant to suffer the pain of potentially higher prices in the near term. Historically, some U.S. companies have even lobbied restrictions on importing key minerals from China to avoid adverse effects on the near-term bottom line. At some point, if China continues to dominate the global key mineral supply chain, U.S. manufacturers may have to accept inevitable export bans, material shortages and higher basket prices. Despite U.S. policy, China’s dominance will erode our choice of key metals.

Vice President Vance can help unify the industry and the U.S. government response. As an important mineral tsar, he can enhance the posture of key minerals in the United States through a comprehensive plan of domination and victory.

Pini Althaus has been the executive officer of the mining and resources department since 2002. He has successfully identified and acquired several important mining projects in the United States, Canada, Australia, China and Latin America. His responsibilities in the resource department include not only administrative responsibilities but also operational responsibilities, fundraising, contact with government officials, shareholder relations, and investor relations/public relations positions. He also served as a consultant to the United Nations Key Mineral Supply Chain in the Arab region.

This article was originally published by RealClearenergy and is provided by Realclearwire.

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