HRES179-119

Tt is the sense of the House of Representatives that— United States policy should seek to— diversify the sources of supplies of critical minerals in a manner that prevents Foreign Entities of Concerns (FEOCs) from restricting, increasing the cost, or otherwise negatively affecting United States access to these resources; improve the efficacy, efficiency, and coordination of United States Federal agencies working to help businesses invest in critical minerals in foreign countries friendly to the United States, including through these agencies’ implementation of United States Government commitments under the United States-led multinational Minerals Security Partnership (MSP); and enhance mutually beneficial partnership with countries in Africa that produce or possess reserves of critical minerals by— mobilizing and supporting investments in new or expanded critical mineral production and processing projects in African markets in order to bolster equitable and transparent global market-based access to African mineral production and promote responsible sourcing and value-added processing of critical minerals in Africa; providing incentives, such as financing or technical assistance, for United States business, and businesses in African countries friendly to the United States to invest in such mineral sector production and processing projects of strategic interest to the United States; and urging the administration to transform the Memorandum of Understanding among the United States of America, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and the Republic of Zambia concerning support for the development of a value chain in the electric vehicle battery sector into a meaningful investment program that can be modelled and implemented throughout the continent; and the House of Representatives urges the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Secretaries of Commerce, Energy, the Interior, Treasury, and Defense, the United States Agency for International Development, the Development Finance Corporation, the United States Export-Import Bank, and any other relevant Federal agencies as appropriate, to develop a 5-year strategy to achieve the following priorities: Strengthen United States commercial diplomacy and development efforts to support United States critical minerals investors and help address challenges of doing business in African countries. Provide financing and technical assistance incentives and pursue public-private investment mobilization efforts to help eligible African mineral producers to capitalize the expansion of their critical mineral production and processing capacities in order to diversify United States critical mineral supply chains and advance African value-addition objectives. Support through the United States International Development Finance Corporation and other Federal agencies, diversified equity funds and investment platforms that provide capital for or incentivize United States private sector investment future mining projects in African countries. Enhance economic cooperation with eligible African critical minerals producers.