President Donald Trump announced the investments during a mining industry roundtable on August 7. The package also includes more than $180 million for mining education, workforce development and technology programs.
The largest defense-related investment is $1.4 billion from the Department of War for Sila Nanotechnologies, a California-based manufacturer of silicon-carbon battery anodes. The funding will expand anode production and support construction of a lithium-ion battery cell manufacturing facility serving supply chains for satellites, unmanned aerial systems and munitions.
The Department of War will also invest $400 million in Sunrise Energy Metals to develop a full scandium value chain. The project includes what the White House described as the world’s first primary scandium mine and is intended to secure materials for high-heat aluminum alloys used in fighter jets and spacecraft.
A further $150 million will go to Minnesota-based Niron Magnetics to support production of permanent magnets that use no rare earth materials and are made entirely in the United States. The White House said the investment will support the defense industrial base and reduce U.S. dependence on foreign-produced rare earth magnets.
The Department of War is also investing more than $85 million in Standard Bauxite to secure supplies of refractory-grade bauxite. The material is used to manufacture high-temperature-resistant products needed for critical military components and other industrial applications.
The package extends beyond direct Department of War investments into other materials needed by advanced manufacturing. The Export-Import Bank will provide financing for U.S. projects involving boron, graphite, tantalum and niobium, while the Development Finance Corporation will support development of a rare earth mine in Madagascar.
The investments are intended to expand U.S. access to materials at multiple points in defense supply chains, from extraction and processing to advanced component manufacturing. The White House said the policy is designed to reduce reliance on foreign countries and limit the exposure of the defense industrial base to geopolitical supply disruptions.
Workforce capacity is another part of the initiative. The Department of Energy will invest $100 million across 14 mining schools, while the Department of War will provide more than $80 million to three schools for workforce programs and technology innovation hubs.
The administration said the education investments are intended to double the number of graduates with credentials related to mining, minerals and associated supply chains. The programs will train geologists, metallurgists and mining engineers needed to support expanded domestic mineral production and processing.
The latest projects form part of a wider administration effort to increase U.S. control over critical-material supply chains. The White House said the Trump administration has signed or approved 160 minerals agreements worth almost $40 billion since January 2025.
The administration has also used executive actions and Section 232 measures to support domestic production of materials including steel, aluminum, copper and critical minerals. In July, Trump signed an executive order focused specifically on securing the critical materials and components required to manufacture advanced U.S. military equipment.
Trump also issued a presidential determination in July delegating authority under the Defense Production Act to impose export restrictions on recoverable critical minerals and materials. The measures place mineral security alongside weapons production and advanced manufacturing within the administration’s broader defense-industrial policy.
