The US Government has concluded a minerals security partnership (MSP) with several other countries to secure the supply of critical minerals to address the growing global demand for the commodity.
Intended to strengthen critical mineral supply chains, the alliance will help spur investment across the full value chain from the partner countries and the private sector for strategic opportunities while complying with the highest environmental, social, and governance regulations.
MSP partner countries include Canada, Australia, Finland, Germany, France, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Sweden, the UK, the US, and the European Commission.
The initiative aims to build strong critical mineral supply chains to support climate goals.
In a press statement, the US Department of State said: “The goal of the MSP is to ensure that critical minerals are produced, processed, and recycled in a manner that supports the ability of countries to realise the full economic development benefit of their geological endowments.”
Significant for clean energy and other technologies, critical minerals include nickel, lithium and cobalt.
The demand for these minerals is anticipated to rise considerably across the globe over the coming decades.
US Department of State economic growth, energy and the environment undersecretary Jose Fernandez was cited by Reuters as saying in a telephone interview that the US requires huge amounts of critical minerals to meet its emissions reduction targets.
Fernandez stated: “You will need six times more lithium by 2050 than you use today in order to meet the clean energy goals.
He also noted that Canada ‘is an important supplier of critical minerals’.
