The Biden administration Tuesday extended a financial lifeline to the domestic mining sector, clarifying that projects geared toward extracting critical minerals like lithium, cobalt and nickel are eligible for a $72 billion pot of federal loan guarantees.
The Energy Department in a blog post said that mining projects are eligible for Loan Programs Office’s Title 17 Clean Energy Financing Program, a program that aims to bolster innovative energy and supply chains.
DOE officials in the post called for more action to boost mining given China’s dominance and booming demand.
“The United States has substantial critical minerals resources, but we must do more if we want to lead in the mining or processing of most critical minerals. Many of the supply chains for these minerals are concentrated in just a few countries, most notably China,” the post reads.
