Mentioned:
The Department of Defense is pouring more cash into a mining company on the Nasdaq. But, why?
What’s happening:
- NioCorp Developments (NASDAQ: NB) has been awarded $10M USD in new funding from the United States Department of Defense to their subsidiary Elk Creek Resources to support the development of domestic scandium production
Why it matters:
- The new funding comes from Title III of the Defense Production Act due to the strategic importance of scandium for the American military in aerospace, hypersonic weapons and naval systems
Going deeper:
- The Elk Creek Project located in Nebraska is the only planned mine in North America that is currently expected to produce scandium, niobium and titanium at commercial scale
- The United States of America has not had a domestic source of scandium in more than than five decades and relies largely on China, Russia and Ukraine for the importation of scandium
The intrigue:
- The United States Export-Import Bank is also currently in the final stages of reviewing NioCorp Developments’ Elk Creek Project for a mega debt financing of up to $800M USD
