US to Support Foreign Minerals Projects to Reduce Reliance on China

An employee works in the chip manufacturing process at a clean room of the Barcelona Institute for Microelectronics in Bellaterra, Spain, on March 3, 2022. Josep Lago/AFP via Getty Images

The board of directors of the Export–Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) has approved supporting foreign minerals projects that reduce reliance on China. The board’s aim is to create resilient supply chains.

The Chinese regime dominates the critical mineral and rare earth supply chain. In December 2024, it banned the export of certain critical minerals with military usages such as gallium, germanium, and antimony to the United States.

EXIM, an independent federal agency, said in a statement on Jan. 8 that its Supply Chain Resiliency Initiative (SCRI) is a response to the Chinese regime’s ban, and that it will strengthen U.S. manufacturers’ options for gaining key materials for technologies through partner nations.

This will include targeted financing allowing U.S. manufacturers such as automakers and battery producers to reach agreements with global mineral suppliers, according to EXIM. The initiative aims to strengthen domestic supply chains by supplying critical minerals to U.S.-based production facilities and bolstering national security while providing economic benefits to U.S. workers and businesses.

EXIM President and Chair Reta Jo Lewis said in a statement that in recent months, private markets have struggled to cope with the Chinese regime’s market manipulation, and that SCRI will enable U.S. companies to compete on a level playing field.

“Through this creative new financing tool, EXIM will provide U.S. businesses access to critical resources, reduce reliance on [China]-controlled supply chains, and foster a stronger, more resilient domestic manufacturing base,” Lewis said.

Many U.S. Congress members have hailed the initiative by EXIM, saying that it will help secure the United States’ economic future.

Rep. John Moolenaar (R-Mich.), chair of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), said the U.S. industrial economy is dangerously dependent on the Chinese regime, which he called the “foremost adversary.”

“The initiative launched today by the U.S. Export–Import Bank will help build more resilient American supply chains and support companies that are not controlled by the CCP in the mining and processing of critical minerals,” Moolenaar said.

Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.), ranking member of the committee, said SCRI will protect good-paying jobs for domestic workers against the “predatory practices” of the CCP.

In October 2024, the EXIM board of directors also approved a nonbinding resolution in support of critical mineral and rare earth financing to reaffirm its support for critical mineral transactions.

This was to in turn support a congressionally mandated program established in 2019 called the “China and Transformational Exports Program,” which assists U.S. exporters facing competition from the Chinese regime in export areas such as semiconductors.