Commodities
Home›Commodities›Mining›NASA blocks further mining plans after U.S. tungsten d…
NASA blocks further mining plans after U.S. tungsten discovery
A NASA objection is preventing additional development at the Great Basin Desert site in Nevada where 3 Proton Lithium made the tungsten find.
OilPrice reports that the U.S. critical mineral push has faced setbacks even at home, despite federal efforts to strengthen domestic supply and challenge China’s role in global markets. The outlet says a company, 3 Proton Lithium, made what the Financial Times described as the biggest tungsten discovery in the United States, but NASA is opposing additional development work at the Nevada site. According to OilPrice, the discovery was made by drilling in a remote section of the Great Basin Desert, where NASA says a large portion of the area is used to track satellite signals sent to Earth. The agency has already blocked drilling in the portion of the region where it performs that tracking, arguing that mining work would compromise operations. OilPrice also notes that the CEO of 3 Proton Lithium, Kevin Moore, told the Financial Times the tungsten is a national security issue, given that the U.S. stopped mining the metal about a decade ago and now imports it, while China controls and manipulates the global market.