President Donald Trump plans to forge more mineral deals with private companies and allies around the world and wants Congress to shield projects from lawsuits, a top White House official said Monday.
Jarrod Agen, the executive director of the White House’s National Energy Dominance Council, said at a Center for Strategic and International Studies’ conference in Washington, that Trump has made minerals a centerpiece of his “America First” agenda and private companies have an open door at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.
The Trump administration has financially supported a number of mining or processing projects, while also making the previously rare move of taking private equity stakes in companies like MP Materials, Lithium Americas and Trilogy Metals, arrangements that have raised eyebrows on and off Capitol Hill.
“[Trump] is willing to put the U.S. government behind important projects, we are willing to flow capital and funding into important projects to get them off the ground,” said Agen. “This president is the best friend mining has ever had.”
