The United States is backing the development of one of Madagascar’s biggest rare-earth prospects as President Donald Trump steps up a multibillion-dollar effort to loosen China’s grip on minerals critical to American industry.
The U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) said on Friday that it would provide project development funding for Harena Rare Earths’ Ampasindava project, describing the deposit as one of the largest of its type outside China.
The announcement came as Trump unveiled roughly $3 billion in new U.S. government investments across critical minerals, batteries and related industries, putting an early-stage African mining project inside a much larger contest over control of strategic mineral supply chains.
“We’re reclaiming America’s rightful place as the minerals superpower of the world,” Trump told more than 200 mining executives, investors and government officials gathered at the State Department, according to Reuters.
China has spent decades building a commanding position not simply in mining rare earths, but more importantly in processing them into materials needed for permanent magnets, electric vehicles, electronics, renewable energy, advanced manufacturing and defence.
