all-of-the-above

After a long wait — with many parades and fireworks honor the men and women who have fought for, and continue to safeguard our freedoms canceled last year because of the coronavirus pandemic — Independence Day 2021 is upon us. With many of the pandemic-related restrictions lifted, celebrating our freedoms this year feels a little more special.

From a critical mineral resource perspective, we at ARPN have always used the occasion of Independence Day to remind ourselves that “while we cherish the freedom we are blessed with in so many ways, we must not become complacent, as there are areas where we’re increasingly becoming less independent” — with our reliance on foreign mineral resources being a case in point.

If the coronavirus pandemic has made one thing clear, it’s that this statement rings more true than ever.

As ARPN’s Daniel McGroarty argued in a piece for Real Clear Politics last March, “[t]he rapid spread of the coronavirus is doing more than claim an alarming number of human hosts — it is burning through decades of bureaucratic inertia and plain inattention as the American economic ecosystem has become dangerously dependent on China.”

The good news is that stakeholders have begun to realize the extent of our mineral resource supply chain vulnerabilities, which significantly increased over the course of the past 65 years.

Whereas the number of non-fuel mineral commodities for which the United States was greater than 50% net import-dependent was 28 in 1954, this number increased to 47 in 2014. And while the U.S. was 100% net import reliant for 8 of the non-fuel commodities analyzed in 1954, this total import reliance increased to 11 non-fuel minerals in 1984, and currently stands at 17. In the latest USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries report, China continues to be the elephant in the data room, listed 24 times as one of the major import sources of metals and minerals for which U.S. net import reliance is 50% or greater. While the 2021 tally is down by one, that change is owed only to the fact that garnet has slightly dropped in import reliance.

In spite of those numbers being largely unchanged from the previous year, 2020 yielded some important progress with regards to policies aimed at reducing our over-reliance on foreign, and especially Chinese metals and minerals. Executive Order 13953 declared a critical minerals national security emergency, with several key provisions of Executive Order later codified in the Energy Act of 2020. The National Defense Authorization Act included key critical mineral provisions, as we noted at the time. And while some were concerned that America’s hyper-partisan climate might put progress on the critical mineral front in peril, the Biden Administration has officially embraced an “all of the above” strategy, which, as ARPN has long held, will go far in promoting the innovation and investment required to advance American resource independence.

One should note, however, that as we’re looking to secure our domestic supply chains, we’re not seeking full independence from our friends, but rather, from adversary nations. As such, strengthening domestic resource production as well as processing and closer cooperation with our friends and allies should not be considered mutually exclusive strategies. While promoting sustainable domestic resource development (and with best wishes for a happy Canada Day today) the U.S. can draw on its special relationship with our neighbors to the North, which we featured earlier this week, along with other close allies.

As we noted earlier this week, striking the right balance will be key as the Administration moves forward to implement the recommendations from its 100 Day Supply Chain Report. As we celebrate Independence Day 2021, there is reason to be optimistic that we’re on the right path.

During last week’s Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources hearing on President Joe Biden’s FY 2022 budget request for the Department of Energy, Senators questioned Secretary Jennifer Granholm on the Department’s view on the role of critical minerals in energy production.

Watch the archived webcast here.

Sec. Granholm stated that critical minerals are “part and parcel of how we are going to be able to electrify the electric vehicle supply, it is part and parcel of making sure that we have the means to [support] the full stream of technology products for clean energy,” domestically.

While stressing the need for recycling and substitution, when pressed by Sen. Steve Daines (R-Montana), Sec. Granholm expressly rejected the notion of an “anti-mining,” “anti natural resource development” sentiment in the Biden Administration.

She pointed to page 18 of the just-released National Blueprint for Lithium Batteries by the Federal Consortium for Advanced Batteries, which stipulates “[s]ecure access to raw and refined materials and discover alternatives for critical minerals for commercial and defense applications” as the number one goal and lists the following near-term objectives:

1. Work with partners and allies to establish reliable sources and supplies of key raw materials for batteries, including critical minerals, both domestic and international
2. Increase U.S. safe and sustainable production capacity of critical battery minerals (lithium, nickel, and cobalt) by supporting R&D and mining efforts
3. Develop federal policies to support the establishment of resilient domestic and global sources and supplies of key raw materials

Calling DOE’s approach a “wrap-around strategy” that includes recycling and substitution, as well as mining, she said:

“This is the United States. We can mine in a responsible way. And many places are doing it. And there are some places where there are more challenges, but we can do this.”

It’s a welcome affirmation of the comprehensive “all of the above” approach ARPN and many others have been calling for, in keeping with the objectives the Biden Administration has embraced in its just-released 100-Day Supply Chain Report.

As Secretary Granholm rightfully says, mining (and processing for that matter) can be done — and is being done — in a sustainable and responsible way in the U.S. APRN will be highlighting some of the more recent efforts undertaken by industry to support the green energy transition in forthcoming posts.

The Biden Administration made clear early on that it is committed to pursuing a low-carbon energy future, and battery technology is a key driver underpinning the shift away from fossil fuels. Just a few weeks ago, when touting his infrastructure package at Ford’s electric vehicle plant in Dearborn, President Joe Biden declared: “The future of [...]

Last week, the Biden Administration released the findings of its 100-day supply chain review initiated by Executive Order 14017 – “America’s Supply Chains.” From a Critical Minerals perspective, there is a lot to unpack in the 250-page report, and we’ll be digging into the various chapters and issues over the next few days and weeks. [...]

[Note from Sandra Wirtz: As ARPN digs through the White House Supply Chain Report, we are completing the week with posts that “preview” metals and minerals prominently mentioned in the Report – beginning with copper.] “The road to decarbonisation will be paved with copper (…) and a host of other minerals, all critical for electric [...]

Earlier today, the White House released the findings of its 100-day supply chain review initiated by Executive Order 14017 – “America’s Supply Chains” and announced a set of immediate actions it is looking to take in an effort to strengthen U.S. supply chains “to promote economic security, national security, and good-paying, union jobs here at [...]

After several positive steps indicating an openness towards a holistic “all of the above” approach on critical minerals, it appears that the Biden Administration may be backpedaling. As Reuters reported earlier last week, the Administration is planning to “rely on ally countries to supply the bulk of the metals needed to build electric vehicles and [...]

As the Biden Administration doubles down on its ambitious climate and technology agenda, it becomes increasingly clear that the issue of material inputs underpinning a green energy transition must be addressed. Followers of ARPN know — not least since last year’s World Bank report or last week’s IEA report — that massive supplies of EV [...]

Touting his infrastructure package at Ford’s electric vehicle plant in Michigan last week, President Joe Biden declared: “The future of the auto industry is Dearborn,electric. There’s no turning back.”  Against the backdrop of the Biden Administration’s push for a low carbon energy future and a global push to reduce greenhouse gases, the International Energy Agency (IEA) has [...]

During a virtual congressional policy forum on critical minerals hosted by House Committee on Natural Resources Republicans earlier this week, experts agreed that the United States must adopt a holistic “all of the above” approach to critical mineral resource policy. Panelists at the event, which can be re-watched in its entirety here, included: Daniel McGroarty, [...]