The United States has access to a financial tool that could help rebuild its domestic critical minerals industry: up to $100 billion in loan authority earmarked for critical minerals. Yet Washington still faces a difficult question. Can money alone loosen China’s grip on the rare earth supply chain? It is not just about locating deposits or funding the mining of more resources. America lacks the capacity to process the raw materials, manufacture products, and have business enterprises that will make it competitive against a well-established industry in China.
Even when American companies are backed by their government, they still have to deal with a competitor that can dictate prices and control exports.
