The US, via the International Development Finance Corp., is reportedly in talks to establish a joint fund with Orion Resource Partners to invest in mining and shore up supplies of critical minerals, according to people familiar with the private negotiations.
Under the contemplated structure, DFC and Orion would contribute equal amounts, scaling over time toward a combined total near $5 billion. The design echoes Orion’s previously announced $1.2 billion venture with Abu Dhabi’s ADQ, while leveraging Orion’s platform as a major mining financier with about $8 billion in assets under management spanning private equity, private credit, venture capital, and commodity trading.
The Trump administration has prioritized securing access to copper, cobalt, rare earths, and other inputs seen as essential for energy, defense, and advanced manufacturing. Near-term risk centers on China’s dominance in processing and its overseas asset purchases.
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Created toward the end of Trump’s first term, the DFC has approved multiple mining-related investments through loans, equity stakes and technical assistance. Those include a $150 million loan supporting Syrah Resources and its Mozambique graphite operations tied to a supply deal with Tesla.
During former President Joe Biden’s presidency, the DFC committed more than $550 million to upgrade the Lobito Corridor railway that moves central Africa copper-belt minerals to Angola’s Atlantic coast.
President Donald Trump named Ben Black, son of Apollo Global Management co-founder Leon Black, to lead DFC in January upon his second term but the Senate has yet to confirm him. In a confirmation hearing three months ago, Black told lawmakers the agency “should never be crowding out private capital” and needs more exposure to New York financial firms.
Neither party is publicly previewing transactions. A DFC official declined to comment on specific projects but said the agency is seeking collaboration with private partners and host governments in eligible countries.
The Department of Defense is simultaneously rebuilding strategic buffers. Last month it launched its first tender to stockpile cobalt since the Cold War. In July, the Pentagon made a $400 million investment in MP Materials and agreed to a supply deal with a guaranteed floor price to protect the producer during down-cycles.
Orion’s deal pipeline overlaps with US strategic aims in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the world’s largest cobalt producer and second-largest copper source. The firm has teamed with Virtus Minerals (run by US military and intelligence veterans) to bid for Chemaf Resources.
A prior agreement for a unit of China’s Norinco Group to acquire Chemaf fell through after Congolese approvals did not materialize. US officials also pressed Kinshasa to halt the transfer to the Chinese buyer.
If DFC were to commit the full $2.5 billion match, the Orion venture could be the largest in the agency’s history, according to government data cited in the notes. The White House intends to expand DFC’s firepower in Trump’s second term, seeking a reauthorization next month that would double or even triple the agency’s investment capacity and widen its mandate.
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