NMA Mining Minute
Your morning newscast covering the top mining-related stories of the day, brought to you by the National Mining Association. NMA is the only national trade organization that serves as the voice of the U.S. mining industry and the hundreds of thousands of American workers it employs before Congress, the federal agencies, the judiciary and the media, advocating for public policies that will help America fully and responsibly utilize its vast natural resources. We work to ensure America has secure and reliable supply chains, abundant and affordable energy, and the American-sourced materials necessary for U.S. manufacturing and economic security, all delivered under world-leading environmental, safety and labor standards.
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NMA Mining Minute 7-14-2025
07/15/2025
NMA Mining Minute 7-14-2025
The House Foreign Affairs East Asia and Pacific Subcommittee is holding a hearing today on "Breaking China's Chokehold on Critical Mineral Supply Chains." The hearing follows a ribbon-cutting event Friday with Energy Secretary Chris Wright and other officials for a Ramaco Resources coal and rare earths mine in Wyoming—the first new U.S. rare earth mine in more than 70 years. Testifying at the hearing will be none other than Former Senator Joe Manchin, now a member of Ramaco’s board. And Lockheed Martin, the defense giant, says it’s holding talks with several mining companies about partnerships to access its long-held seabed licenses in the Pacific Ocean. The licenses were granted by U.S. regulators in the 1980s, during an initial flirtation with deep-sea mining but they have remained unused. And as President Trump heads to Pittsburgh for an AI and energy event, PJM Interconnection, which serves Pennsylvania and the surrounding region, has issued maximum generation and load management alerts across its territory. This is the second time this summer PJM has sent these alerts as high heat and surging power demand threaten supply. That’s your mining minute for this morning, highlighting some of the mining-related matters that are on our minds here in Washington and beyond. Follow us on the National Mining Association’s channels, as well as on Minerals Make Life and Count on Coal, for more on the latest news and policies impacting mining.
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NMA Mining Minute 7-14-2025
07/14/2025
NMA Mining Minute 7-14-2025
Was last week’s deal between the Defense Department and rare earths company MP Materials a new blueprint for government support for other critical minerals? That’s the question Politico asks this morning. The landmark deal includes a combination of government equity and debt financing, a price floor and long-term offtake agreements—a collection of industrial policy tools that taken together are expected to have a significant impact. At least one industry expert believes this announcement and the use of these tools could be “start to a massive campaign of similar announcements.” And the Wall Street Journal reports U.S. copper prices are trading at records ahead of the 50% tariff President Trump has said he will impose on imports on Aug 1. Traders and analysts expect copper prices in the U.S. to remain at a premium. The tariff announcement is driving the market, but copper prices were expected to climb regardless from booming demand to build data centers, renewable-energy installations and electric cars. And President Trump will be travelling to Pittsburgh tomorrow to speak at an energy and AI summit at Carnegie Mellon University. President Trump and Sen. Dave McCormick are expected to announce $70 billion in AI and energy investments. Energy and AI leaders from around the world, including over 60 CEOs, will be in attendance, highlighting the intersection of the AI race with surging electricity demand. That’s your mining minute for this morning, highlighting some of the mining-related matters that are on our minds here in Washington and beyond. Follow us on the National Mining Association’s channels, as well as on Minerals Make Life and Count on Coal, for more on the latest news and policies impacting mining.
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NMA-TV Mining Minute 7-11-2025
07/11/2025
NMA-TV Mining Minute 7-11-2025
The Chinese government yesterday announced the discovery of 38 new sites of mineral reserves this year, adding to its already rich mineral reserve, which gives the country huge leverage in global trade and relations. The sites reportedly include large and medium-sized deposits of everything from uranium to cobalt. The announcement is a clear sign from China that, despite international efforts to shore up alternate mineral supply chains, China has no intention of giving up its global mineral dominance anytime soon. In meetings in Washington this week, President Trump hailed West Africa’s rich natural resources as he hosted five of its leaders for a White House summit to discuss trade that will counter Russia and China’s longstanding influence, particularly in minerals. Ahead of the meeting, Trump said, ““There’s great economic potential in Africa, like few other places, in many ways…” He highlighted the continent’s “vibrant places, very valuable lands, great minerals, great oil deposits.” The meetings underscore the importance of minerals to the administration’s international trade strategy. And yesterday we reported on efforts by North Dakota lawmakers to use a Congressional Review Act resolution to kill a Biden-era land use land that would block coal leasing on federal lands. Well, yesterday afternoon, Montana lawmakers jumped in with their own legislation to kill a similar plan impacting Montana. Republican lawmakers have said they are eager to put the CRA resolutions on the floor for a vote. “One way or another, we’ll get rid of this RMP,” said Sen. Kevin Cramer, who led the North Dakota delegation on the matter. That’s your mining minute for this morning, highlighting some of the mining-related matters that are on our minds here in Washington and beyond. Follow us on the National Mining Association’s channels, as well as on Minerals Make Life and Count on Coal, for more on the latest news and policies impacting mining.
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NMA Mining Minute 7-10-2025
07/10/2025
NMA Mining Minute 7-10-2025
The headlines say, “They came for the coal and stayed for the rare earths.” And in Wyoming, tomorrow, Ramaco Resources will break ground on the nation’s first rare earth mine in decades—and it’s also a coal mine. Back in 2011, the company bought an existing coal mine that was first opened in the late 1800s but had been out of service for decades. Then they discovered large deposits of rare earth and critical minerals needed for national defense gear and semiconductors. The event takes place tomorrow at 1 p.m. Rare earths miner MP Materials has a new massive shareholder: the Department of Defense. In a deal set to close today, the company and the DOD will enter into a public-private partnership that includes a multibillion-dollar package of investments and long-term commitments from the government, all to reduce foreign dependency by accelerating American supply-chain independence. And today, North Dakota lawmakers plan to introduce a Congressional Review Act resolution that would strike down a resource management plan finalized by the Biden administration in January. The plan restricts certain energy development and elevates conservation above other land uses. Lawmakers say it blocks fossil fuel leasing on more than 4 million acres for coal and more than 200,000 acres for oil and gas. The CRA allows Congress to use a majority to strike down regulations that have been recently finalized. Last month, the Government Accountability Office determined the lawmakers could use the CRA to kill the resource management plan. That’s your Mining Minute for this morning, highlighting some of the mining-related matters that are on our minds here in Washington and beyond. Follow us on the National Mining Association’s channels, as well as on Minerals Make Life and Count on Coal, for more on the latest news and policies impacting mining.
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NMA Mining Minute 7-9-2025
07/09/2025
NMA Mining Minute 7-9-2025
President Trump said in yesterday’s cabinet meeting that he has decided to impose a 50% tariff on imports of copper, an announcement that pushed U.S. copper prices to an all-time high. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick later in the day said that the new tariffs will go into effect by Aug. 1 or sooner. The Department of the Interior yesterday gave the green light to a new coal mine in Tennessee under its new, expedited environmental review procedures designed to speed up reviews of energy projects in response to the national energy emergency declared by President Trump earlier this year. This project will produce up to 1.8 million tons of coal over the next 10 years. The Wall Street Journal has an interesting look at how countries in Africa are beginning to restrict mineral exports in an effort to build their own processing capacity at home, creating more jobs and revenue. Nearly half of Africa’s 54 countries have restricted or banned raw-material exports over the past two years, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development—efforts that could be at odds with the Trump administration’s international minerals dealmaking. That’s your Mining Minute for this morning, highlighting some of the mining-related matters that are on our minds here in Washington and beyond. Follow us on the National Mining Association’s channels, as well as on Minerals Make Life and Count on Coal, for more on the latest news and policies impacting mining.
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