The UK Government is strengthening its Critical Minerals Strategy by investing in domestic extraction, processing, recycling and supply chain development to enhance resource security and economic resilience. The Aluminum Federation (ALFED) welcomed the move, noting that aluminum was officially designated as both a Critical Mineral and a Growth Mineral in 2024 under the UK's Vision 2035 framework. ALFED urged policymakers to place greater emphasis on aluminum recycling, remelting, sorting and supply security advanced processing to strengthen domestic supply chains and promote circular manufacturing. The federation highlighted that recycled aluminum can be reused indefinitely while requiring only around 5% of the energy needed to produce primary aluminum, making it a key material for low-carbon manufacturing and long-ter.

Nigeria has announced the discovery of a new polymetallic mineral province in Kaduna State containing copper, nickel, lithium, rare earth elements, platinum group metals and gold, describing it as one of the country's most significant critical minerals discoveries in recent years. The discovery was made by Steron Mining in collaboration with the Nigerian Geological Survey Agency (NGSA). At the same time, Steron Mining reported approximately 3.3 million tonnes of lithium reserves at its Abuja project, with total mineral resources estimated at 94.8 million tonnes. The Nigerian government said it will continue promoting domestic mineral processing and value-added development to strengthen its position in the global critical minerals supply chain. That infrastructure, power supply and regulatory challenges remain key factors affecting future project development.

Orion CMC is in advanced discussions on three Asian partnerships to support a US$20 billion pipeline of critical mineral projects. Copper, lithium and rare-earth developments are among its priority investment targets.

US miner Atlas Critical Minerals plans to seek an environmental licence to expand iron ore extraction at its Rio Piracicaba project in Brazil’s Minas Gerais, targeting annual output growth from 300,000 tonnes to 1.5 million tonnes. The company is in the pre-licensing stage and may later evaluate an iron ore processing plant to support domestic and export sales."

[SMM Rare Earth Flash] US critical minerals producer Energy Fuels (NYSE American: UUUU) recently announced that it has signed a definitive agreement with private equity firm Ara Partners to acquire Vacuumschmelze (VAC), a century-old German magnetic material enterprise, for approximately $1.9 billion. The transaction is expected to close in early 2027. VAC’s existing Sumter plant in South Carolina, US, has a permanent magnet capacity of 2,000 mt per year, expandable to 12,000 mt per year. The acquisition combines VAC’s downstream magnetic material manufacturing with Energy Fuels’ upstream rare earth mining and separation assets, as well as the metal capacity from the planned acquisition of Australian Strategic Materials (ASM), creating the first rare earth platform in the West that spans the entire supply chain from mining to finished magnets. VAC will retain its German headquarters and brand.

The U.S. administration is considering taking equity stakes in critical minerals companies to strengthen domestic supply chains. Copper mining, refining and recycling projects could potentially benefit from the initiative.