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, approximately 350 kilometres west north-west of Sydney. The investment aims to bolster America's supply of scandium, a mineral increasingly critical to aerospace, defence, and automotive industries.

Currently, nearly all scandium supply is sourced from China, Russia, and Ukraine. The Pentagon's Office of Strategic Capital (OSC) noted that no primary mine-source scandium supply exists globally today; instead, scandium is typically harvested as a by-product of other industrial or resource extraction processes. Foreign competitors account for about 80 percent of the world's mining production and nearly all scandium processing.

Sunrise Energy Metals stated its project intends to deliver "the world's first primary source of mine-able, high-grade scandium." In February 2026, the company's CEO Sam Riggall said the project, backed by mining billionaire Robert Friedland, is 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). Speaking at a State Department event in Washington attended by over 200 mining executives, educators, and investors, Trump said the US is reclaiming its position as "the minerals superpower of the world."

The OSC emphasized the importance of international cooperation, stating, "No one country alone can create secure, end-to-end supply chains in critical minerals and rare earths," highlighting Australia's role in supplying the US and its partners with essential minerals for strategically important economic sectors.

Sources