The U.S. is developing a new %RareEarthMinerals partnership with Australia.
According to media reports, miner Australian Strategic Materials (ASX:ASM) is in discussions with the U.S. Department of Defense about building a rare earths alloy plant in America.
The potential deal comes as the U.S. ratchets up efforts to source critical minerals outside of China.
The U.S. is said to be especially interested in securing supplies from the Dubbo rare earths project located in New South Wales, Australia.
America is in the process of diversifying its critical minerals supply away from China, which it has increasingly difficult trade relations with.
Growing protectionism in both the U.S. and China has cast a shadow over the critical minerals industry in recent years.
China continues to dominate the global rare earths sector in both production and technology, with state-controlled operations in the nation of 1.4 billion people.
Australian Strategic Materials is reportedly aligning its rare earth minerals supply with the U.S. Defense Department’s priorities.
The Australian company specializes in critical minerals and metals that are used in clean energy technologies such as wind turbines and solar panels.
Australian Strategic Materials produces minerals and metals such as neodymium iron boron alloys, and future products are expected to include titanium, zirconium, hafnium, and niobium.
The Australian miner says it has narrowed the location of its U.S. alloy plant to six states, though a final decision hasn’t been made.
Australian Strategic Materials’ stock trades on Australia’s main exchange. Its share price is currently at $0.46 Australian dollars, down 54% in the past 12 months.
