Africa’s first transcontinental rail network, known as the Lobito Corridor, which aims to eventually connect almost the entire regional copper-cobalt belt with additional links across sub-Saharan Africa, is on track to break ground early in 2026, a senior official at the US Department of State told Fastmarkets.

Reducing reliance on China’s hugely successful critical minerals supply chain dominance was never going to be easy, as some western mining companies are finding out the hard way.

European imports of pipeline natural gas from Russia via Ukraine have ended, putting the region’s metals smelters and refineries on alert for potential hikes in operational costs.

China's tightened export controls on gallium and germanium formalize existing restrictions, heightening supply concerns amid ongoing geopolitical tensions.

A second Trump administration would reorient US critical minerals policy to prioritize security over climate concerns, former inaugural US Assistant Secretary of State for Energy Resources Frank Fannon said during a fireside chat at the Resourcing Tomorrow conference in London on Tuesday December 3.

Europe’s hopes of an independent battery supply chain are in jeopardy, some market participants said, after a recent spate of company announcements that were widely regarded as bearish for the burgeoning sector.

Demand for germanium, which is a key material in space-based solar energy applications, is expected by market participants to see growth in the coming years, on the back of the increase in satellite launches and progress made in large-scale satellite internet constellation projects, sources told Fastmarkets.

Wogen Resources has signed a binding offtake agreement with Australian antimony miner Larvotto Resources for the sales rights of the miner’s upcoming antimony-gold concentrate produced during the first seven years of mining, the companies confirmed with Fastmarkets on Monday December 2.

Gallium, germanium and magnesium were listed among the top 10 priority materials that could face significant supply chain disruptions, according to a report published by the British Geological Survey (BGS)-hosted Critical Minerals Intelligence Centre (CMIC) on Thursday November 28.

The market for silicon anodes is likely to develop rapidly, independently of growth in the ex-China graphite supply chain, according to the chief executive officer of a leading silicon anode producer.