Follow CGSP on Social Media

Listen to the CGSP Podcast

Unhappy With Continued Reliance on China for Critical Minerals, U.S. Senators Push Biden to Act

by Eric Olander

In a rare display of bipartisanship, a group of U.S. Senators this week sent letters to four cabinet members expressing their frustration over the administration’s lack of progress in using funds allocated by Congress in the Energy Act of 2020 to build a domestic critical mineral supply chain.

The Senators’ impatience on this issue reflects a broader anxiety in Washington about the current U.S. dependence on China for supplies of processed metals and minerals including cobalt, manganese, and nickel which are essential to electric vehicle batteries and other next-generation technologies.

Lead the Conversation on China

Subscribe Today to Get Full Access to The China-Global South Project

Check Out Everything You'll Get With Your Subscription

The China-Global South Daily Brief delivered to your inbox at 6AM Washington time

Full access to exclusive news and analysis from editors based in the Global South

Transcripts of CGSP’s twice-weekly podcasts

Students and teachers with a valid .edu email address are eligible for a 50% discount off monthly or yearly subscriptions. Email us to receive a discount code.

You Might Like

Where Does China Source Its Natural Gas

China is the world’s fastest-growing market for natural gas and imported more last year than any other country — accounting for 60% of global demand. The bulk of China’s imports in 2021 came ...

Conservatives in the U.S. Say Biden’s Energy Policies Would Expose the U.S. to Become “Dependent Upon China and Its Client States in the Congo”

Apparently, the Democratic Republic of Congo is a “client state” of the Chinese government, or at least according to the latest meme to emerge on conservative U.S. media sites like Fox News. China’s ...

Ford’s CEO is Unhappy with China and the DRC’s Control Over EV Supply Chain

Ford chief executive Jim Farley said the cost of electric vehicles remains too high, in part because of the cost of importing key raw materials like cobalt from the Democratic Republic of the ...

What is The China-Global South Project?

Independent

The China-Global South Project is passionately independent, non-partisan and does not advocate for any country, company or culture.

News

A carefully curated selection of the day’s most important China-Global South stories. Updated 24 hours a day by human editors. No bots, no algorithms.

Analysis

Diverse, often unconventional insights from scholars, analysts, journalists and a variety of stakeholders in the China-Global South discourse.

Networking

A unique professional network of China-Africa scholars, analysts, journalists and other practioners from around the world.

Subscribe