April 1, 2026 -

Yesterday held good news for domestic mineral supply chain security with the announcement from Perpetua Resources that the Board of the Export-Import Bank of the United States unanimously agreed to notify Congress of a proposed $2.7 billion loan for development of the company’s Stibnite Project. This decision triggers a 25-day notice period to Congress and is the last formal step before U.S. EXIM's Board will vote on final approval, after which the Company would have all the funds it needs for this important gold and antimony project.

And because the U.S. also needs to secure mineral supplies abroad to meet immediate demand, in more good news for our supply chains, U.S. company Virtus Minerals has acquired one of the world’s largest cobalt producers abroad. Virtus finalized its acquisition of the company on Friday. The company’s assets in the Congo are capable of producing around 5% of the world’s cobalt, and Virtus says it plans to sell all of future production to American or “U.S.-aligned” buyers.

And in yet another example of how the current energy crisis out of the Middle East is impacting the way countries are thinking about their energy strategy, Italy is set to postpone the shutdown of its coal power plants to 2038, 13 years later than planned. The move reflects a rebalancing of climate policies with energy supply challenges underscored by the conflict in Iran.