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u.s. news Diahuebs 23 December 2021

US Treasury creates pathway to send aid to Afghanistan

(AP) - The Treasury De- ghanistan,” said Deputy of trying to help the Afghan
partment on Wednesday Treasury Secretary Wally Ad- people without also funding
announced it was issuing eyemo in a statement. “Un- a Taliban government that
special licenses to ensure fortunately, the economy the U.S.-led coalition sup-
that some international faces grave challenges, ex- planted after the 9/11 attacks
aid could flow to Afghani- acerbated by the country’s in 2001 and then fought for
stan, where the economy long dependence on foreign roughly 20 years.
collapsed following the aid, donor and private sector
Taliban takeover in Au- flight sparked by the Taliban’s As much as 80% of Afghani-
gust. takeover, drought, structural stan’s budget comes from
macroeconomic issues, and the international commu-
The licenses will enable the the COVID-19 pandemic.” nity. Without greater access
U.S. government, interna- The U.S. government has to foreign money, the Afghan
tional organizations such as labeled Afghanistan’s Taliban economy is likely to contract
the United Nations and non- and the related Haqqani net- by about 30% this year —
governmental organizations work as terrorists, severely re- furthering the humanitarian
to operate in the country stricting their access to global crisis.
and offer humanitarian assis- institutions and the outside
tance despite sanctions. They money that supported the The State Department said
will also allow Afghans liv- country’s economy before the U.S. government plans to
ing abroad to send money to the withdrawal of U.S. forces provide Afghanistan with an the country has an estimated transfer $280 million from
their families in Afghanistan this year and the swift demise additional 1 million vaccine population of about 40 mil- the World Bank’s Afghani-
through remittances. of its previous government. doses in the coming weeks. lion. stan reconstruction trust
That brings the total U.S. fund to U.N. organizations
“We are committed to sup- Biden administration offi- donation for Afghanistan to Earlier in December, the to address health and nutri-
porting the people of Af- cials face the awkward task 4.3 million doses, though U.S. government worked to tion needs in the country.

Nebraska project finds key minerals, but can it mine them?

(AP) — Far beneath the sult, despite years of efforts, tanium. The U.S. relies en- half the titanium is imported But the Nebraska project
rolling cropland of south- the mine in Nebraska might tirely on imports for 14, and from China and other coun- is one of dozens of critical
east Nebraska sits a de- never be built. foreign producers provide tries. minerals projects worldwide
posit of elements that more than half the supply of at various stages of develop-
can be used to make steel “People can spend their ca- another 14 substances, led by Company officials say tests ment, competing for inves-
and aluminum stronger. reers — all of their life — China. have found some of the tors.
Extracting them would working for a mining com- most sought-after elements
seem to be just the kind of pany and never produce an Recently, tight supplies at the Nebraska site, but it’s “I can assure you that as the
project that President Joe ounce of metal,” said analyst caused prices to soar for the not clear yet whether there’s largest shareholder of this
Biden has argued is need- David Abraham, who wrote a critical elements used in enough to be commercially company, there is nothing
ed to reduce the United book about mining rare earth lightweight magnets for elec- viable. more that I want done faster
States’ dependence on elements. tric vehicles and other high- than financing, and we’re
foreign suppliers of criti- tech products. In 2011, new Even if NioCorp can come working our tails off to get it
cal minerals. Without a doubt, money is export restrictions by China up with the money for its done,” said NioCorp CEO
the biggest hurdle to min- caused abrupt shortages of 17 mine, its profitability could Mark Smith, who holds
But a proposed mine to re- ing company NioCorp’s rare earth elements. hinge on whether its miner- more than 19 million shares
cover the minerals — niobi- plans to build a mine about als will be cheaper than for- and has loaned the company
um, scandium and titanium 80 miles (130 kilometers) Niobium is mixed with steel eign competitors’ supplies. more than $2 million of his
— is instead providing a case south of Omaha. The com- to make the alloy stronger, own money.
study in the difficulty of ac- pany estimates it needs about lighter and more heat and “Simply knowing the exis-
tually launching such proj- $1 billion and so far, it hasn’t corrosion resistant. It is used tence of a mineral deposit The Biden administration
ects in the U.S. secured enough major inves- in bridges, oil rigs, pipelines that’s attractive geologically made rare earth elements a
tors and the federal govern- and jet engines. Most of the does not guarantee commer- focus of its supply chain re-
The challenges start with the ment hasn’t shown much U.S. supply comes from open cial viability,” said professor view earlier this year and is
massive amount of money willingness to share that cost. pit mines in Brazil. The U.S. Rod Eggert, deputy direc- investigating the national se-
needed to build a mine but has never had a significant tor of the Critical Materi- curity implications of relying
also include fickle customers, The U.S. is dependent on shortage, but the government als Institute at the Colorado so heavily on imports. A task
the nation’s tougher environ- imports for the 35 substanc- is concerned enough that it School of Mines. force is planned to identify
mental regulations, volatile es it currently designates as keeps a supply in its national U.S. sites for production.
markets and intense interna- critical minerals, including defense stockpile. NioCorp has been actively
tional competition. As a re- niobium, scandium and ti- exploring the site for seven The new $1 trillion infra-
Scandium can make alu- years, drilling out samples structure plan that provides
minum stronger, is used in from as deep as 3,000 feet incentives for electrical ve-
some specialized lasers, and (900 meters) below the sur- hicles and wind power is ex-
would be used more wide- face. The company raised pected to boost demand for
ly if greater supplies were $6.2 million earlier this year critical minerals.
available. Most comes from to buy the land, and since
China, with smaller amounts 2015 has raised roughly $60 “It always helps when the
produced in the Philippines, million. public sees that the govern-
Russia, Canada and Kazakh- ment has an interest in these
stan Nearly half of NioCorp’s areas,” NioCorp’s Smith
6,400 shareholders live in said. “But I’ve been in this
The titanium that NioCorp Nebraska not far from the business for an awful long
hopes to produce would pri- project. The proposal has re- time — over 40 years — and
marily be used in paint pro- ceived the key state and fed- I think it may be time for us
duction. Unlike niobium and eral environmental permits it to quit studying these issues
scandium, there are a few would need. and start doing something
U.S. mines, but more than about the issues.”