The Office of Strategic Capital (OSC) has executed its first direct loan to support the U.S. industrial base and safeguard critical minerals supply chains. This action is part of a broader agreement reached in July 2025 between the Department of Defense (DoD) and MP Materials, which operates a rare earths mine in the United States. The OSC has provided a $150 million loan to MP Materials to expand heavy rare earth separation capabilities at its processing facility in Mountain Pass, California.
"I applaud the Office of Strategic Capital on this incredible milestone, and I am extremely proud of the focused, unified effort and support from Secretary Hegseth and Deputy Secretary Feinberg to make this agreement happen," said the Honorable Emil Michael, Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering. "Through this loan, we are taking decisive action to restore our domestic critical minerals supply chain, revive our industrial base, and rebuild our military to achieve President Trump's goal of peace through strength."
Funding for this $150 million loan was made possible by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed into law by President Trump on July 4, 2025. The legislation provides OSC with $500 million in credit subsidy funding, enabling up to $100 billion in loans targeted at boosting critical minerals production as well as related industries and projects.
"The Chinese Communist Party has implemented aggressive actions to endanger the global critical minerals supply chain and ultimately undermine American economic and national security," said Patrick Witt, Acting Director of OSC. "Since his first term in office, and for decades prior to that as a private citizen, President Trump has been clear that economic security is national security. To that end, the President directed the DoD to use its authorities and capital tools to confront the threat posed by the CCP. This loan is part of the Department's answer to that call and demonstrates our commitment to defeat adversarial attempts at economic coercion and ensure the unmatched superiority of our industrial base and Armed Forces."
The move aims to reduce reliance on foreign sources for key materials used in defense systems by investing in domestic capacity expansion.
