Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has offered Italy priority access to Canada’s critical mineral reserves as the two countries expanded cooperation on supply chains, defence and energy during talks at the G7 summit in France. The meeting with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in Évian builds on a year of growing bilateral engagement centred on critical minerals. Recent developments include Italian energy company Eni’s nearly C$100 million investment to secure graphite from Nouveau Monde Graphite’s (TSX-V: NMG)(NYSE: NMG) Matawinie project in Québec, Italy’s entry into the Critical Minerals Production Alliance and a series of trade and investment initiatives between the two countries. “Italy’s…
Author: TJ Markle
Colorado hydromet plant targets first separated heavy rare earth oxides in third quarter. USA Rare Earth has commissioned a hydrometallurgical demonstration facility in Wheat Ridge, Colorado, that is expected to de-risk the rare earth processing and separation technologies needed to feed the company’s envisioned mine-to-magnets supply chain. The Colorado facility is targeting first production of separated heavy rare earth oxides during the third quarter of 2026, including dysprosium and terbium – a pair of elements that are especially important to the high-performance permanent magnets used in electric vehicles, wind turbines, robotics, defense systems, and other advanced technologies. “The hydromet facility…
American venture capitalists, Japanese firms, and the Pentagon get behind Foundation Alloys Series A financing. For centuries, advanced alloys have been produced using the same fundamental approach – melting metals together and carefully controlling how they cool and solidify. Believing that this age-old method has reached its practical limits, Foundation Alloy has developed a solid-state metallurgy platform capable of engineering alloys without ever melting the constituent metals. This alloying technology has drawn the interest of venture capitalists, who participated in a $22 million Series A financing, and a Japanese multinational corporation that is joining Foundation as a strategic distribution partner…
Existing Northern Territory processing complex could accelerate commercial deployment of NVRO’s innovative metals recovery tech. NVRO Metals Ltd. (formerly EnviroGold Global Ltd.) has taken a major step toward commercial deployment of its proprietary metals recovery technology by securing an industrial-scale processing complex in Australia’s Northern Territory that could serve as both a production center for critical minerals and a launch platform for global deployment of the company’s NVRO Process. Under a deal announced June 10, the British Columbia-based company agreed to acquire Northern Territories Resources Pty Ltd., an Australian mining and exploration company that owns a copper-cobalt-silver-lead-zinc-nickel project roughly 55…
US Banks To Be Subpoenaed in Global Fraud Probe A high-stakes legal battle has erupted in the Southern District of New York between one of the world’s largest titanium producers and a world-renowned concert composer who is accused of orchestrating an international scheme to steal Russia’s resources. The “Moscow metals maestro” is alleged to have moved millions of liquidated stolen assets through sophisticated shell corporations from Europe to Bahrain and into America, to launder stolen money, obfuscate the source origin of tainted titanium, and avoid paying tariffs in America. Federal court filings in Manhattan indicate that Igor Raykhelson, an internationally…
Silver is caught between its industrial usage and its monetary reputation, as surging demand from solar panels and electronics tightens physical supply while investors continue to treat it as a precious metal tied to gold. Industrial demand accounts for just over half of annual silver consumption, around 57% in 2026 estimates, up from around 50% five years ago, according to the Silver Institute’s World Silver Survey. The shift follows consecutive years of structural supply deficits and periods of tightening visible inventories across major trading hubs, including the COMEX in New York and the London Bullion Market Association (LBMA) system. Five…
A proposed West High Yield Resources (TSXV: WHY) magnesium mine in British Columbia remains stuck in limbo due to the objections of a U.S.-based Indigenous group. B.C.’s Court of Appeals last week allowed a temporary injunction from the province’s Supreme Court that delays the project to remain in place until after a judicial review of the open-pit mine’s environmental permitting process has been completed. A hearing into the matter is scheduled for May 5. Calgary-based West High Yield had intended to begin construction of Record Ridge this quarter with a view to starting production in next year’s first quarter, according…
United States President Donald Trump overturned a 2023 decision by the Biden administration that had placed a 20-year ban on mining and geothermal leasing across more than 910 sq. km of national forest land in northeastern Minnesota. H.J.Res. 140, signed into law on Monday, reopens large swaths of territory in Cook, Lake, and Saint Louis counties to potential resource development, reversing a key conservation measure put in place by the Bureau of Land Management. On April 16, the U.S. Senate narrowly voted to overturn the mining ban, agreeing with the House of Representatives and sending the bill to Trump. The…
I. Introduction: The Critical Mineral Landscape Critical minerals have emerged as a priority for national policymakers. In an era of intricate global supply chains, mineral resources that are essential to the economy and at risk of supply disruptions represent a unique choke point in a country’s ability to produce energy generation, storage, and distribution systems; military equipment; and data storage, transmission, and computational hardware. Because critical minerals are vital inputs to virtually every technology that shapes modern life, they play an outsized role in the global economy and national security. Critical minerals and rare earth elements are not necessarily inhibited…
Critical materials are substances that the U.S. government identifies as essential to energy technologies, economic and national security, and the manufacture of key products. This importance means the United States needs to ensure access to supplies of these materials. Supply chains that provide critical materials can be disrupted by events like sudden increases in demand, natural disasters that affect supply, and foreign governments restricting exports. The Department of Energy (DOE) has identified 18 critical energy materials that are important for the future of the energy sector. Many critical materials have unique properties that make them important for advanced technologies. For example, some are…