THE US Department of Defense is to take a stake of almost 20% in tungsten producer Elmet Group, the latest in a series of government investments aimed at reducing America’s reliance on China for critical minerals used in weapons manufacturing.
Under the $450 million deal, structured as redeemable preferred equity, the Pentagon will hold a 19.9% stake in Elmet and gain the right to appoint an independent director to its board, said Bloomberg News on Monday. Elmet’s shares surged by as much as 55% following the announcement.
The company said the funding would expand tungsten manufacturing at its plants in Maine, Michigan and Ohio, and strengthen long-term access to feedstock, while also backing mining and processing investment in the US, Australia and Spain.
Tungsten, an extremely dense metal used in armour-piercing munitions, has risen more than eightfold in price since Beijing tightened export controls in early 2025. George Kollitides, who heads the Pentagon’s economic defence unit, said the investment would secure domestic processing capacity that Washington “cannot afford to leave exposed.”
The deal follows a string of similar interventions, including a $400m stake taken in rare earths group MP Materials last year, along with investments involving USA Rare Earth, Lithium Americas and Trilogy Metals.
Supply pressures have also prompted private moves: on Monday, miner Almonty Industries announced a tungsten-sourcing partnership with Rwanda, brokered with US government support though not directly funded by it. Prices, which spiked further amid stockpile shortages and Middle East tensions, have since stabilised.
