Washington, D.C. (November 1, 2023)—The U.S. Department of State and SAFE signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) Wednesday formalizing the nonprofit as the Department’s sole NGO partner in a new initiative to spur investment in critical minerals supply chains.
Under Secretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy and the Environment Jose W. Fernandez, Assistant Secretary Geoffrey R. Pyatt, Special Representative for Global Partnerships Dorothy McAuliffe, and SAFE Founder, President, and CEO Robbie Diamond met at a formal signing ceremony to officially kickoff the Minerals Investment Network for Vital Energy Security and Transition, or MINVEST, initiative, which aims to:
- Bring the private sector to the table to support the goals of the Mineral Security Partnership (MSP);
- Encourage investment in strategic mining, processing, and recycling opportunities domestically and abroad; and
- Create more secure, sustainable, and diverse critical minerals supply chains that are not over-reliant on one country.
“The MINVEST public private partnership with SAFE will allow us to engage more systematically with the private sector and establish a mechanism to accelerate investment in responsible and sustainable critical minerals projects,” said Under Secretary Fernandez.
“SAFE is excited to be the State Department’s partner in MINVEST. The U.S. and its allies are going to need to mine, process, and recycle minerals to strengthen our energy and national security as well as bolster our economic competitiveness,” said SAFE Founder, President, and CEO Robbie Diamond. “Just as the MSP brings governments together to support resilient, sustainable, and secure supply chains, MINVEST will expand the expertise and participation of the private sector to source these building blocks of our modern economy with the highest standards.”
SAFE, through its Ambassador Alfred Hoffman Jr. Center for Critical Minerals Strategy (Minerals Center), has already been working with the State Department to diversify U.S. critical minerals supply chains.
SAFE has proven to be a valuable partner and implementer for State Department in prior short-term engagements and events, including a private sector roundtable at UNGA in September, and organizing and leading workshops with the Battery Councils of Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) on ways to spur private sector investment and build regional capacity for strategic mining, processing, recycling, and battery production.
In its March report, “A Global Race to the Top: Using Transparency to Secure Critical Mineral Supply Chains,” SAFE’s Minerals Center outlined a vision for how the United States can work with its partners and allies to create higher standards in critical minerals supply chains through radical transparency, from the mine to the final product.
The report emphasizes working with major allies while building capacity globally to level the playing field and create a global race to the top for critical mineral supply chains that are not dependent on foreign entities of concern to access the building blocks of a more electrified, connected, and autonomous future.
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About SAFE’s Center for Critical Minerals Strategy
The Ambassador Alfred Hoffman, Jr. Center for Critical Minerals Strategy aims to secure all aspects of the critical minerals supply chain to help empower the United States to lead in the connected, autonomous, shared, and electric vehicles future with a focus on the entire minerals life cycle upon which these sectors rely.
About SAFE
SAFE is an action-oriented, nonpartisan organization committed to transportation and energy policy solutions that advance the economic and national security of the United States, its partners, and allies. SAFE has convened business and former military leaders since 2004 to advocate for secure, resilient, and sustainable energy solutions. Visit secureenergy.org to learn more.
Media Contact
Jason Islas | jislas@secureenergy.org | Phone: (310) 977 0645
