The Pentagon is investing more than half a billion dollars to expand an Australian critical mineral project that is set to become the world's first scandium mine, US President Donald Trump announced on Saturday, August 8th, 2026.

The $400 million USD ($560 million AUD) loan will support Sunrise Energy Metals' Syerston scandium project located near Fifield in central west New South Wales, about 350 kilometres west north-west of Sydney. The project aims to deliver "the world's first primary source of mine-able, high-grade scandium," according to Sunrise Energy Metals.

Scandium is an increasingly critical mineral used widely in aerospace, defence, and automotive sectors. Currently, nearly all scandium supply comes from China, Russia, and Ukraine, and there is no primary mine-source scandium supply globally. Instead, scandium is harvested as a by-product of other industrial or resource extraction processes, the Pentagon's Office of Strategic Capital (OSC) explained.

The OSC noted that "foreign competitors" account for about 80 percent of the world's mining production and nearly all scandium processing. The Syerston project is expected to enhance Australia's capacity to supply the US and its partners with critical minerals needed for strategically important economic sectors.

In February, Sunrise Energy Metals' chief executive Sam Riggall said the project, backed by mining billionaire Robert Friedland, was expected to contribute to a US critical minerals stockpile valued at $12 billion USD ($16.9 billion AUD).

President Trump announced the loan alongside other investments in critical minerals and battery projects totaling $3 billion USD ($4.2 billion AUD) during a State Department event in Washington attended by over 200 mining executives, educators, and investors. At the event, Trump stated the US was reclaiming its position as "the minerals superpower of the world."

The announcement underscores the strategic importance of securing end-to-end supply chains in critical minerals and rare earths, a goal that no single country can achieve alone.

Sources