Government Supports Critical Mineral Investment with Annual 50 Billion Won Fund

Identifying Annual Demand to Pursue Continuous and Long-Term Investments

The government will support private sector investments in critical minerals to stabilize the supply chain of essential raw materials used in advanced industries such as electric vehicles and semiconductors.

On the 18th, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the Ministry of Economy and Finance, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs held the inaugural meeting of the "Critical Minerals Investment Council" to discuss ways to revitalize domestic and international critical minerals development and enhance outcomes.

The council, established based on the government's announced 'Supply Chain Stabilization Basic Plan' and '2025 Economic Policy Direction,' serves as a consultative body to identify promising private-sector critical minerals investment projects. Private sector associations and companies also participate, with the Overseas Resources Development Association and Korea Mine Reclamation Corporation jointly serving as secretariats.

The goal is to establish a comprehensive public-private cooperation support system encompassing existing overseas resource development support programs such as investments from the Supply Chain Stabilization Fund, overseas resource development surveys and loans (Mine Reclamation Corporation and Korea Energy Agency), overseas investment insurance (Korea Trade Insurance Corporation), and supply chain consulting (KOTRA).

Until now, the government has indirectly supported private sector critical minerals acquisition through measures like the 'Critical Minerals Securing Strategy' and overseas resource development surveys and loans, but there were criticisms regarding the lack of direct investment support tools and insufficient linkage between support programs. In response, the government plans to create opportunities for direct and indirect investments in critical minerals acquisition projects by Korean companies through the Supply Chain Stabilization Fund and strengthen coordination among support programs.

To this end, starting this year, the government will promote public-private joint investments in critical minerals at an annual level of approximately 50 billion KRW using the Supply Chain Stabilization Fund. Considering demand each year, continuous and long-term investments will be pursued. The Supply Chain Stabilization Fund investments will not be short-term or one-time but will actively support the revitalization of private sector critical minerals investments through steady long-term funding.

A government official stated, "As the chair country of the Minerals Security Partnership (MSP), we will faithfully fulfill our role and, through coordination with the Critical Minerals Investment Council, actively support Korean companies participating in various overseas critical minerals investment projects such as mining and processing."