TLDR
- Westwater Resources (WWR) closed up 87.7% after Reuters reported it will receive a $25M Export-Import Bank loan
- The loan funds WWR’s Alabama graphite mine, which would be the first source of natural graphite in the U.S.
- 5E Advanced Materials (FEAM) will receive an $8M Ex-Im loan to boost boron production
- Private company Global Advanced Metals secured a $25M loan to expand tantalum and niobium processing in Pennsylvania
- The $58M in total funding is part of Trump’s push to reduce U.S. reliance on Chinese critical mineral supplies
Westwater Resources (WWR) surged 87.7% on Friday, with most of the move coming in the final hour of trading after Reuters reported the company would receive a $25 million loan from the U.S. Export-Import Bank.
Westwater Resources, Inc., WWR
The loan is earmarked for WWR’s Alabama graphite mine and processing facility. If completed, it would be the first source of natural graphite in the United States.
Graphite is the largest metal by volume used in lithium-ion batteries. The U.S. currently produces only synthetic graphite, derived from petroleum coke, a byproduct of oil refining.
Battery manufacturers typically prefer one type over the other depending on the application, making a domestic natural graphite supply strategically valuable.
5E Advanced Materials (FEAM) was also named in the Reuters report. The company will receive an $8 million Ex-Im loan to expand production of boron at its California facility.
Boron was added to the U.S. government’s critical minerals list last year. It is used in nuclear energy, body armor and other defense products. The California project is expected to begin commercial production in 2028.
The U.S. currently imports most of its boron needs.
Global Advanced Metals Also Secures Funding
The third recipient is Global Advanced Metals, a private company, which will receive $25 million to expand processing of tantalum and niobium. Neither mineral is mined in the U.S.
Global Advanced Metals mines both metals in Australia and processes them at a facility in Pennsylvania.
Tantalum is widely used in capacitors for smartphones and automobiles. Niobium is used as an alloy to harden steel for pipelines and aircraft.
The total package comes to $58 million across the three companies.
Trump Meeting With Mining Executives
The funding announcement was timed to coincide with a White House meeting on Friday between President Trump and executives from some of the world’s largest mining companies.
The meeting was aimed at reinforcing the U.S. push for stronger domestic and allied mineral supply chains.
ExIm chairman John Jovanovic said the funding aims to “fortify our supply chains, restore crucial industries that support well-paying American jobs and safeguard everyday Americans from supply shocks.”
WWR’s spike came almost entirely in the last hour of the session, suggesting the Reuters report hit late in the trading day.
FEAM did not see the same scale of move as WWR following the news
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