Trump Announces Nearly $3 Billion Investment in Mining to Reduce Reliance on China

WASHINGTON—President Donald Trump announced on Aug. 7 that the U.S. government would invest nearly $3 billion to support critical minerals and battery projects and expand the American mining workforce.He unveiled his plans at a roundtable at the State Department, which brought together nearly 200 business leaders, educators, and government officials to support domestic mining companies.“I think you haven’t been treated well for many years,” Trump told mining industry executives as he began his remarks.“We’re putting our miners back to work, and we’re reclaiming America’s rightful place as the minerals superpower of the world.”Among the projects are the Department of War’s signing of a $1.4 billion loan agreement with Sila Nanotechnologies to build a next-generation battery facility in Washington state.Other projects include the Department of War’s $400 million investment in Sunrise Energy Metals to produce high-heat aluminum alloys for fighter jets and spacecraft, and a $150 million investment in Niron Magnetics, a Minnesota company manufacturing magnets for the defense industrial base.The Export–Import Bank is also preparing to provide loans for mining projects, including a loan of more than $1 billion to support Ivanhoe Electric’s Santa Cruz Copper Project in Arizona, Trump said.“The United States is opening new mines at the fastest pace, and we opened the first American rare-earth mine in more than 70 years,” Trump said.According to the White House, the Department of Energy is launching a $100 million grant program to support scholarships and related initiatives. Universities, community colleges, trade schools, industry groups, and other partners will be eligible to apply.Additionally, the military is providing more than $80 million in funding to three universities for technology and workforce development programs. The recipients are the Colorado School of Mines, the South Dakota School of Mines, and Johns Hopkins University.“Half of our current mining workforce is set to retire within the next three years,” Trump said during the event.The new funding is expected to develop skilled workers and strengthen supply chains for the American mining industry.The meeting comes as the White House is working to reduce America’s reliance on China for critical minerals and processed metals, which are essential for the U.S. defense and technology sectors.Key Cabinet members who attended the roundtable included Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. Industry executives from Resolution Copper, MP Materials, American Ocean Minerals, Ivanhoe, and Century Aluminum also participated, according to the White House.Trump said the United States lost more than 3,400 mines in the past 30 years.“That’s sad,” he said. “But now they’re coming back, and they’re coming back faster.”Since taking office, Trump’s administration has approved more than 160 mineral agreements worth nearly $40 billion, he said.Trump also said that mining permits now take as little as 25 days, down from five years before he took office.At the event, Rubio said that the country’s mining industry has been in decline for a quarter of a century.“We’ve been walking away from the importance of this, and now we’re trying to make up for 25 or 30 years of mistakes,” he said.Rubio highlighted the launch of the Forum on Resource Geostrategic Engagement earlier this year, an international partnership led by the United States to enhance global critical mineral supply chains through public financing and diplomatic cooperation. The administration signed 27 critical mineral agreements with other countries to strengthen these supply chains.Speaking at the event, Lutnick said: “We lost critical minerals not because of free markets—it’s because of foreign subsidies, market distortion, export restrictions, stockpiling—these adversaries have just cheated their way to market strength, and we are back and we’re fighting it. We’re not going to accept dependence on foreign supplies.”As part of the effort, the federal government has acquired direct equity stakes in several mining companies in the past 12 months. The Pentagon now holds shares in Lithium Americas, Trilogy Metals, USA Rare Earth, MP Materials, and Atlantic Alumina, as well as a stake in a joint venture with Korea Zinc.In July 2025, the Department of War invested $400 million in rare-earth producer MP Materials. Trump said the government’s stake has since increased in value to nearly $1.2 billion.The administration has also invested in companies outside the mining sector, including Intel. Trump defended the government ownership of stocks and highlighted their returns. In August 2025, the U.S. government acquired a 10 percent stake in Intel. Since then, Intel’s stock price has risen by 310 percent.“Do I get credit for that? No,” Trump said. “Did anybody say, ‘Great job’? And by the way, it’s for the country. It’s not for me.”At the event, Tom Albanese, chairman of deep-sea mining firm American Ocean Minerals, presented Trump with a gold replica of a deep-sea nodule.Albanese said that the nodules contain 20 critical metals essential for America’s reindustrialization, national defense, and key technologies.Note: This article has been updated to reflect a total investment figure of $3 billion, up from the previously reported $2 billion. The revised figure includes a $1 billion Export-Import Bank loan for Ivanhoe Electric’s Santa Cruz Copper Project in Arizona, which was part of the announcement by Trump, although not listed in the White House fact sheet.