Critical Minerals: What’s On & What’s Next
Welcome to the 26th edition of FTI Consulting’s weekly Critical Minerals Newsletter, where we dive into key global business, policy, regulation, and legal developments surrounding critical minerals, including anything from production and processing to electric vehicles and upcoming events.
In this week’s newsletter, we discuss permitting legislation in the United States, Mexico’s Senate reforming mining laws, Brazil creating six new indigenous reserves, the Philippines and United States’ plans to partner on minerals for clean technologies, and Indonesia’s upcoming minerals export restrictions, among other developments. Read more below.
- U.S. Senator reintroduces permitting overhaul legislation: On May 2, U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) reintroduced the “Building American Energy Security Act of 2023,” which aims to improve the permitting process by reducing environmental review timelines, setting a statute of limitations for legal challenges, as well as other amendments to speed up the permitting process. The bill was included in the National Defense Authorization Act last year but was removed from the final text due to progressive legislators claiming it favored fossil fuel development over environmental protections. According to Sen Manchin, the bill will serve as a starting point for upcoming Senate conversations on permitting reform.
- E&E News reports the Energy and Natural Resource Committee plans to hold a legislative hearing on the bill as soon as next week.
- House Republicans allege Democrats’ position on mining is hypocritical: During a May 2 House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources field hearing on mineral development in Minnesota, Republicans criticized Democrats’ support for mining and minerals because they support President Biden withdrawing 225,000 acres of federal land in Minnesota, which holds significant mineral deposits. Overall, Republican members underscored that a lack of domestic mining leads to increased reliance on countries with less stringent environmental standards, namely China and the Democratic Republic of Congo. In an April 14 letter to U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai, Rep. Pete Stauber (R-MN) criticized President Biden for entering into trade agreements with countries like Indonesia while neglecting to develop domestic mining projects in Minnesota.
- Stauber also emphasized Democrats’ absence from the committee hearing, while Democrats claim they were not given the standard 2-week notice to make adequate arrangements.
- Mexico’s Senate approves new mining reforms: On April 29, the Mexican Senate fast-tracked the approval of a set of new mining laws to shorten concessions in the mining sector from 50 years to 30 years, tighten water extraction permits, and require a portion of mining profits be returned to the communities impacted by their operations. These reforms have the approval of President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, who previously proposed reducing concessions to 15 years.
- Canada expressed concern over these changes, claiming it could impact investments in Mexico’s mining industry, and as Camimex, the national mining chamber, noted, these reforms could cost Mexico $9 billion in investments and 420,000 jobs.
- Canada alleges China’s lithium production uses slave labor: On April 28, during an event in New York, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau alleged Chinese lithium production uses “slave labor” while advocating for increased battery metal production in Canada. Specifically, he said, “If we’re honest … the lithium produced in Canada is going to be more expensive. Because we don’t use slave labor.” He explained, “[Canada puts] forward environmental responsibility as something we actually expect to be abided by. Because we count on working with, in partnership, with Indigenous peoples, paying their living wages, expecting security and safety standards,” while also underscoring the need to strengthen the resilience of the critical mineral supply chain.
- Relatedly, the U.S. has also alleged the Xinjiang region uses forced labor in mining and construction; however, China denies these claims.
- Brazil’s President decrees six new indigenous reserves, banning commercial activity: On April 28, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva issued a decree creating six new indigenous reserves covering roughly 1.5 million acres in an effort to preserve the environment and protect indigenous communities’ rights. Notably, the decree gives indigenous communities the exclusive use of the reserves’ natural resources, bans all mining, and tightens rules on commercial farming and logging. The decree was met with support from indigenous leaders who noted the government has vowed to recognize 14 new territories.
- White House national security adviser warns the IRA will not boost mining enough to meet increasing demand: During a speech to the Brookings Institution on April 27, National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan warned that incentives in the Inflation Reduction Act are “insufficient” to meet the world’s climate goals. He noted that the U.S. is “going to have to take further steps” to incentivize critical minerals mining, bolster global cooperation, and reduce market volatility, noting the U.S. could develop a club of nations for trading critical minerals to build on the Minerals Security Partnership.
- Sullivan also suggested the status quo leaves clean energy supply chains overly exposed to Chinese control, which means it could be “weaponized in the same way as oil in the 1970s or natural gas in Europe in 2022.” Sullivan acknowledged that while some people are apprehensive about the calls for more mining, “there are just certain realities [to the energy transition].”
- Philippines to partner with U.S. on minerals to counter China and meet climate goals: On May 1, U.S. President Joe Biden announced the U.S. will work with the Philippines to develop its supply chain of minerals needed for clean technologies to quickly transition to clean energy and transportation while countering China’s current control of the global critical minerals markets. Specifically, President Biden announced the U.S. will send a “first of its kind” presidential trade and investment mission to support its efforts.
- The U.S. and the Philippines have recently increased their security collaboration to counter China’s economic control of key markets and actions in the South China Sea.
- Indonesia amends ban on shipping copper concentrate to allow completion of copper smelter: On April 28, Indonesia’s Energy and Natural Resources Minister, Arifin Tasrif, announced it will allow Freeport Indonesia and Amman Mineral Nusa Tenggara to export copper concentrate until May 2024 to allow for the completion of domestic smelters. The Energy and Natural Resources Ministry will issue a regulation outlining the requirements for the export leniency for copper but noted there is unlikely to be leniency for bauxite, which is used in Aluminum production.
- Mozambique’s President announces desire to increase domestic mineral processing: At Mozambique Mining & Energy Conference 2023, Mozambique’s President, Filipe Nyusi, expressed he wants investors in the country’s extractive industries to increase domestic processing of mineral resources, noting it would create jobs and reduce its imports. Additionally, he underscored energy and mining companies must take responsible actions to protect the environment where they operate.
May
- Society for Mining, Metallurgy & Exploration is hosting SME’s 8th Current Trends in Mining Finance Conference in New York, New York, on May 8-11: The conference will bring together many subject matter experts and interested stakeholders to discuss the outlook, trends, and non-technical and technical issues that affect capital raising in the global mining industry and how management and investors can employ best practices and technology to anticipate, track, manage and reduce the risks associated with mining projects.
- Automotive Logistics is hosting Finished Vehicle Logistics North America in Waterfront Beach Resort, California, on May 9-11: This event will cover the most important issues for vehicle logistics through a program of hard-hitting panels and sessions, interactive workshops, and innovator showcases.
- The European Union and EIT RawMineral e.V. are hosting the Raw Mineral Summit in Brussels, Belgium, on May 15-17: This event will feature leading players in the international raw materials industry, innovators, educators, researchers, prominent figures from the European Commission, NGOs, and more. Key discussions will be on the major innovations, policy initiatives, challenges, and opportunities facing the raw materials sector will take place.
- Volstoci Capital is hosting Mining Congress Qazaqstan in Astana, Qazastan, on May 23-24: This event is devoted to sharing experiences between key mining companies, to discussing flagship investment projects for the construction and modernisation of production and infrastructure facilities, to development of new deposits and boosting productivity of operating mining plants.
- Mexico Mining Center is hosting the Discoveries 2023 Mining Conference in Sinaloa, Mexico, on May 30-June 1: This event includes over 50 talks covering topics ranging from the latest geological discoveries; new technologies applied to mining and exploration; social, legal, and political issues affecting the industry; and the challenges and obstacles confronted and overcome on the way to production.
June
- ICA Events and ITECA are hosting the International “Astana Mining & Metallurgy” Congress in Astana, Kazakhstan, on June 1-2: This event facilitates the expansion of intersectoral investment cooperation, the conclusion of new contracts, and the development of joint solutions that meet modern challenges.
- ExpoGroup is hosting the 7th Minexpo Africa in Nairobi, Kenya, on May 31-June 3: This event shows the widest range of latest technology in the mining and processing of minerals industry, as well as safety equipment.
- Timmins is hosting Canadian Mining Expo in Ontario, Canada, on June 7-8: This event includes an overview of projects in the pipeline – presentations from up-and-coming juniors and active mines, live demos – watch the equipment as it is put through its paces, and an Aboriginal forum – presentations from the Indigenous Community.
- Ghana Chamber of Mines is hosting the Ghana Mining Summit in Accra, Ghana, on June 7-9: Ghana Mining & Energy Summit theme will be “Harnessing Responsible Mining and Clean Energy Potential To Accelerate Sustainable National Development,” and will include interactive sessions and panel discussions will feature topics such as local manufacturing/local content, environment, social and governance, climate change, sustainable development, gender and inclusivity, standardization, renewable energy, and good governance.
- Fastmarkets is hosting its Copper Seminar 2023 in New York, New York, on June 14: This event provides the opportunity to learn from expert speakers from across the copper supply chain and gain insights to strategically tackle common concerns, as well as plan for 2024 and beyond.
- Energy and Mines is hosting the Energy and Mines Australia Summit in Perth, Australia, on June 14-15: This event allows miners to get the latest insight on the strategies and technologies for realizing net-zero targets and to network with mining peers and decarbonization experts. This year’s agenda offers in-depth coverage of the key areas of interest identified by miners as pivotal at this stage of decarbonization transition.
- Beacon is hosting Mines and Money Melbourne Connect in Melbourne, Australia, on June 14-15: This event offers two action-packed days of networking, cutting-edge market analysis, comparison of investment opportunities, knowledge sharing, and, above all, forging invaluable long-term business relationships that will last well into the future.
- Fastmarkets is hosting the 15th Lithium Supply and Battery Raw Materials 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada, on June 20-22: This event is the largest global forum for lithium and battery raw materials and provides the opportunity to access end-to-end coverage of the battery raw materials industry, including price volatility and supply chain risks, as well as battery recycling and innovations in battery chemistries.
- REIA is hosting REIA 2023 Annual Conference and General Assembly in Barcelona, Spain, on June 21-23: The event will bring together key stakeholders from the rare-earth sector, drawn from industry, academia, government and the investment community. Participants will hear about the latest developments in pricing and market dynamics, resource and supply challenges and solutions, new and improved technology development, sustainability and the circular economy, and efforts to advance the role of rare-earth elements in meeting the demand challenges to come, for decarbonization.
- The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) is hosting World Mining Congress in Brisbane, Australia, on June 26-29: This event is an exceptional opportunity for international delegates to gain insights into Australia’s world class mining operations, R&D, METS, and Universities.
July
- AMETrade is hosting the 6th Annual Mining on Top of Africa 2023 in Paris, France, on July 12-13: The conference is a strategic forum for the leading stakeholders across Europe to connect with mineral and metal exploration companies from Africa, to drive collaboration and partnerships for sustainable mining across the continent.
- E&E News: Barrasso demands DOE end battery loan to China-linked firm
- The Wall Street Journal: The Next Big Bull Market Could Be Copper
- Australian Financial Review: Lithium giant looks to double down in WA
- Reuters: Exclusive: US government may delay decision on electric vehicles biofuel program
- Financial Times: Letter: Governance of deep-sea mining must avoid conflicts of interest
- Bloomberg: One of the World’s Lithium Leaders Looks Like a Shakier Source
- Council on Foreign Relations: The President’s Inbox Recap: Critical Minerals and China
- Bloomberg: US-EU Critical Minerals Deal Would Give EU Broader Trade Relief
- Electric Autonomy: Exclusive: Tesla looking at “opportunities for industrial facility, mineral extraction” in Ontario
- E&E News: California approves fossil fuel fleet truck phaseout
- Yonhap News Agency: Yoon asks Tesla CEO Musk to invest in S. Korea
- Reuters: Chile’s lithium push emerges as test for Latin American resource nationalism
- The Washington Post: The underbelly of electric vehicles
- Las Vegas Sun: Cortez Masto bill seeks to codify 150-year-old mining law; environmentalists balk
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