U.S. Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum recently stated that the Trump administration is considering investing in companies involved in the mining and processing of critical minerals to reduce the US's reliance on imports.
On the evening of Wednesday, April 23, Burgum spoke at a meeting organized by the Ham U.S. Energy Research Institute, saying, "We should use part of our balance sheet to invest," and that the US may need to make equity investments in every company in the critical minerals sector.
Burgum believes that low-cost minerals from other countries have made it difficult for some U.S. companies to compete with foreign firms.
He said that the US could use tools similar to sovereign wealth funds to invest in domestic miners focused on extracting and processing critical minerals, "Why doesn't the richest country in the world have the largest sovereign wealth fund?"
Taking rare earths as an example, according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), 80% of the US's rare earths were imported in 2024. Last month, Trump signed an executive order invoking the Defense Production Act to provide funding and other support to increase the capacity of critical minerals.
The White House stated that although the US possesses some critical mineral resources, it still heavily relies on imports, which poses economic and security risks. Officials said the government will also coordinate with the private sector to ensure a stable and resilient domestic supply chain for critical minerals.
Speaking about the mining industry, Burgum said, "We must get back in the game, not just 'drill, baby, drill,' but also 'dig, baby, dig.' If we don't do this as a nation, we won't succeed. We will be completely at the mercy of others who control our supply chain."
Burgum stated that the Trump administration is also considering establishing a sovereign risk insurance fund to protect companies investing in approved projects from changes in Washington's political climate. If a future president cancels a project through executive action, the related companies would receive compensation from this fund.
"Think of it as a federally backed insurance market," Burgum said. "If you're going to make decisions that destroy our balance sheet or destroy company opportunities, you (future government) have to pay."
Burgum said that the US also needs to stockpile critical minerals through mechanisms similar to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, meaning that when mineral prices plummet, the US should buy and store these minerals.
"These three things—stockpiling, sovereign risk insurance, and equity stakes—will give us a foothold in the critical minerals sector. We are working to achieve these three goals."