U.S. Senators Todd Young (R-Ind.) and John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.) reintroduced the Critical Materials Future Act to establish a pilot program for the Department of Energy to support domestic critical material processing projects.
“Our reliance on global supply chains for critical materials poses a significant national security threat, especially as the Chinese Communist Party continues to manipulate this market,” said Senator Young. “Our bill will take innovative steps to identify opportunities for American leadership and investment in critical material projects, strengthen domestic supply chains, and boost our economic and global competitiveness.”
“American energy independence is a bipartisan goal,” said Senator Hickenlooper. “The U.S. could be a global leader in critical materials, but we need to shore up our domestic supply chains to strengthen our national security. Let’s get to work.”
The U.S. critical minerals list contains 50 minerals – including graphite, nickel, and cobalt – that are essential to our economy, infrastructure, and military capabilities. Critical minerals are used in smartphones, semiconductors, batteries, advanced defense equipment, and more
In addition to export restrictions from December 2024, China announced new controls on five critical minerals on February 4: tungsten, tellurium, bismuth, indium, and molybdenum. China currently controls 90% of the global processing capacity for rare earth elements and over 80% of the processing for other critical minerals like cobalt, gallium, and graphite. Experts have become increasingly concerned with U.S. dependence on China for critical materials, arguing it poses a significant risk to national security.
The Critical Materials Future Act supports critical material processing projects in the United States by granting the Secretary of Energy the authority and funding to deploy innovative financial mechanisms, such as contracts for differences and advanced market commitments, within this sector.
The bill also requires the Secretary of Energy to conduct a comprehensive study on the impact of these financial tools on market dynamics and processing projects within the critical materials sector and to provide recommendations for expanding their use to strengthen America’s processing capabilities.
In addition to Senators Young and Hickenlooper, Senators Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Chris Coons (D-Del.) also co-sponsored the Critical Materials Future Act.
The legislation builds on Senator Young’s efforts to ensure American independence in critical minerals, including the introduction of his STRATEGIC Minerals Act.
Full text of the Critical Materials Future Act is available here. A one-pager explanation on this bill is available here.
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