The race to secure critical mineral supplies is heating up as the world's superpowers jockey for position in the burgeoning clean energy economy. This week, the U.S. and Saudi Arabia announced a landmark deal to build a rare earths processing facility in the Gulf kingdom, underscoring the growing geopolitical importance of these essential materials.
According to the Financial Times, the joint venture between U.S. mining group MP Materials and the Saudi government will establish a new rare earths hub in the Middle East. "Mining group MP Materials will share a minority stake in the joint venture with the U.S. government to build and operate the facility," the FT reported.
The move is a strategic play by the U.S. to reduce its dependence on China, which currently controls over 60% of global rare earth production. "The West scrambles to fill heavy rare earth gap as China rivalry deepens," Reuters reported, noting that countries like the U.S., Japan, and Europe are racing to develop their own domestic supply chains.
Recycling Efforts Ramp Up to Meet EV Battery Demand
As the electric vehicle revolution accelerates, the need for critical minerals like lithium, cobalt, and rare earths has skyrocketed. This has put enormous strain on global supply chains, leading to shortages and price spikes.
However, scientists may have found a greener solution, according to OilPrice.com. "Beyond Black Mass: Scientists Find a Greener Way to Recycle EV Batteries" details a new recycling process that can extract valuable materials from e-waste without the energy-intensive and polluting "black mass" method.
"E-waste is a massive and rapidly growing issue as more and more of our electronic devices reach the end of their life and end up in landfills," the article notes. "Finding new ways to breathe life into old electronics or to harvest their valuable components for upcycling, such as costly metals and rare earth minerals, is not only critical to closing this wasteful loop, but could also be an enormous economic advantage for the tech manufacturing industry."
Copper Miners Optimize Operations Amid Tight Supply
The supply crunch is also being felt in the copper market, a key input for renewable energy infrastructure. At the Cuajone copper mine in Peru, operators are turning to innovative technologies to boost efficiency, as reported by International Mining.
"Cuajone copper mine optimises belt maintenance with REMACLEAN GBM," the article details, describing how the mine is using a new conveyor belt cleaning system to reduce maintenance costs and downtime. "Learning from practical experience and continuously optimising products with customers are the stated goals of TIP TOP Vulkanisation Borna GmbH, a member of the REMA TIP TOP Group."
Optimizing existing operations will be crucial as miners struggle to bring new copper projects online quickly enough to meet surging global demand, driven by the energy transition.
The Geopolitical Implications of Critical Mineral Scarcity
The high-stakes race for critical mineral supplies has major geopolitical implications, as the world's superpowers jockey for position. Tensions between the U.S. and China, in particular, are escalating, with both sides seeking to shore up domestic production and reduce reliance on the other.
"West scrambles to fill heavy rare earth gap as China rivalry deepens," Reuters reported, noting that countries like the U.S., Japan, and Europe are racing to develop their own rare earth supply chains. The Saudi rare earths deal is just the latest salvo in this intensifying global competition.
As the clean energy transition accelerates, the battle for critical mineral supremacy will only intensify. Policymakers and industry leaders will need to navigate these complex geopolitical dynamics while also addressing the urgent need to scale up production and recycling. The future of the green economy may well hinge on who controls the underlying mineral resources.
Reporting based on coverage from the Financial Times, Reuters, OilPrice.com, and International Mining, November 19-20, 2025.