September 6, 2026 - American Resources Corp earlier this week became the inaugural platinum member of the Critical Minerals Institute (CMI), with CEO Mark Jensen highlighting the potential for the relationship to strengthen the company's industry connections and involvement in critical minerals policy discussions.

Jensen told Proactive that CMI was one of the premier associations in the critical minerals sector and said the experience of its team was particularly impressive.

He said the timing of the membership was important for American Resources Corp  given what he described as the company's aggressive developments around investments in mining assets throughout the world.

Jensen also highlighted access to CMI's data, relationships and events as benefits of the membership, noting that the company was looking forward to attending one of the institute's events in Toronto.

The relationship could also provide American Resources Corp with a platform to participate more actively in discussions around the development of the critical minerals industry and relevant policy.

A further potential catalyst highlighted in the interview was the development of a more coordinated critical minerals industry capable of engaging policymakers and governments with a unified position.

Jensen said industry associations had previously played an important role in working with governments in the coal sector and argued that CMI could help bring participants together as the critical minerals industry develops.

"For the longest time, we gave the technologies to China. Now we're bringing it back," Jensen said.

He added that the industry needed "that uniform voice, that one voice" to demonstrate what the sector requires and how it can be developed more effectively.