critical mineral

[krit-i-kuhl min-er-uhl, min-ruhl]

noun

1. a mineral or element, such as aluminum, cobalt, lithium, or nickel, that is declared by the U.S. government to be necessary for the production of nationally important technologies and is difficult to source, especially because of its rarity or location.

Word History and Origins

Origin of critical mineral¹

First recorded in 2005–10

Example Sentences

The US president inked two memoranda of understanding with Malaysia and Thailand, both seeking to "strengthen cooperation" on critical minerals.

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In recent days, Orion Resource Partners, an investment firm specializing in metals, announced a $1.8 billion investment consortium, seeded in part with U.S. government money, to secure critical minerals for the U.S. and its allies.

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The Southeast Asian nations also agreed to facilitate U.S. access to critical minerals and not impose regulations or fines that target U.S. tech firms.

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China is implementing its own export controls on critical minerals, extending restrictions to foreign products using Chinese rare earths, and launching antitrust probes into U.S. companies.

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That includes critical minerals such as tungsten, lithium, copper, and magnesium classified by the U.S.

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