Korean mine visited by U.S. government researchers amid intensifying competition for critical minerals from China.

• A South Korean mine was recently assessed by U.S. government researchers for progress in increasing the supply of a vital metal, tungsten, from regions outside China, according to the mine operator.
• This year, the Sangdong Mine, owned by a subsidiary of Canada-based Almonty Industries, will resume operations.
• Almonty claims that the mine could potentially produce 50% of the rest of the world's supply of tungsten, an extremely hard metal used for making weapons, semiconductors and industrial cutting machines, with China dominating over 80% of the metal's supply chain.

A South Korean mine was recently assessed by U.S. government researchers for progress in increasing the supply of a vital metal, tungsten, from regions outside China, according to the mine operator.

This year, the Sangdong Mine, owned by a subsidiary of Canada-based, will resume operations. Tungsten, an extremely hard metal, is used for making weapons, semiconductors, and industrial cutting machines.

Almonty claims that the mine could potentially produce 50% of the rest of the world's tungsten supply, as China currently dominates over 80% of the metal's supply chain.

Since 2015, the U.S. has not commercially mined tungsten, as stated in the latest annual report from the U.S. Geological Survey, a government agency that assesses the availability of natural resources.

The National Minerals Information Center's assistant chief, Sean Xun, led a group of four mineral resource scholars to the Sangdong Mine, according to the report.

The U.S. Geological Survey will provide a "major revision" to its evaluation of the mine in its 2025 report, which will be released in the first three months of next year.

The agency did not respond to a request for comment made outside of U.S. business hours.

The Biden administration has declared certain minerals as critical and imposed tariffs on tungsten and others in an effort to enhance national security.

In 2019, the US was completely dependent on foreign sources for 13 out of the 35 critical mineral commodities identified by the Department of the Interior, as stated by the U.S. Geological Survey.

The Sangdong Mine, which shut down in the 1990s, will be reopened by Almonty with a minimum investment of $125 million.

In the past year and a half, China has begun exerting control over global critical mineral exports through its leverage in the supply chain.

Beijing has not imposed any restrictions on tungsten yet. However, anticipated rules to control antimony exports have sparked speculation that tungsten may soon face more Chinese export limitations.

If Donald Trump wins the US presidency and increases tariffs on China, Beijing may retaliate with new export controls on essential minerals or intensify existing controls.

"Chinese authorities may apply selective controls on minerals, denying them to foreign companies perceived as supporting the US technological containment agenda."

The U.S. Energy Department has received $151 million in grants to promote domestic mining and processing of critical minerals, and western countries are expected to counter Beijing's "calibrated weaponization of critical minerals by intensifying efforts to reduce reliance on China.