President Donald Trump announced billions of dollars in new mining deals and investments aimed at strengthening domestic supply chains and expanding U.S. access to critical minerals.
Trump unveiled the investments Friday during a White House roundtable with mining industry leaders. The administration said the projects include more than $2 billion in critical mining and mining-related investments. Another $180 million will go toward mining education and workforce development.
The investments are part of a broader administration effort to reduce U.S. reliance on foreign countries for minerals used in defense, manufacturing and advanced technologies.
“Together we’re reawakening the spirit of the Gold Rush,” Trump said during the event. “Very simply, we’re making mining great again.”
Among the largest investments is a $1.4 billion agreement with California-based Sila Nanotechnologies. The funding will expand production of silicon-carbon battery anodes and support construction of a lithium-ion battery cell manufacturing facility.
Trump said the project would involve a battery facility in Washington state..
Another $400 million will go to Sunrise Energy Metals to develop a scandium supply chain. The project includes what the White House described as the world’s first primary scandium mine. Scandium is used in high-heat aluminum alloys for fighter jets and spacecraft.
The administration is also investing $150 million in Minnesota-based Niron Magnetics. The company is developing rare earth-free permanent magnets intended to reduce dependence on foreign-produced rare earth magnets.
More than $85 million will go to Standard Bauxite to strengthen supplies of refractory-grade bauxite used in high-temperature materials.
Trump also said the U.S. Export-Import Bank was working to provide more than $1 billion in financing for Ivanhoe Electric’s copper mine in Arizona. The bank is also seeking to support graphite development in Alabama and a boron project in California, The Hill reported.
The White House separately listed $25 million for Westwater Resources to develop the Coosa Graphite Deposit in Alabama and $8 million for 5E Advanced Materials to develop a boron deposit in California. Another $25 million will support tantalum and niobium production in Pennsylvania.
The administration is also directing $100 million to 14 U.S. mining schools. More than $80 million will go to three schools for workforce development programs and technology innovation hubs.
China controls significant portions of global mineral supply chains through its role in mining, refining and trading. Critical minerals are used in weapons, semiconductors, renewable energy systems and other technologies.
The White House said the Trump administration has signed or approved 160 minerals deals totaling nearly $40 billion since January 2025.