U.S. and Ukraine Reach Agreement on Minerals

The United States and Ukraine have reached an agreement on jointly developing Ukraine’s mineral resources, including transition metals and rare earth minerals, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday, citing Ukrainian officials and the final version of the agreement it had seen.

Talks have apparently progressed since last week’s heightened tensions between the U.S. and Ukraine after the Trump Administration launched discussions with Russia on a potential end to the war in Ukraine, without the participation of Ukraine or the EU. 

The deal outlines a framework for the establishment of a fund, in which Ukraine would contribute 50% of proceeds from the “future monetization” of Ukrainian mineral resources, including metals and oil and gas.

The final version of the agreement omits an initial U.S. demand to have the right to $500 billion in potential revenue from the deal, according to FT.

“The minerals agreement is only part of the picture. We have heard multiple times from the US administration that it’s part of a bigger picture,” Olha Stefanishyna, Ukraine’s deputy prime minister and justice minister, told FT.

Stefanishyna has led the negotiations with the U.S.

Last week Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in one of his daily addresses to the nation “We need strong agreements with the United States – agreements that will truly work.”

Reports have it that Zelenskiy will travel to Washington D.C. on Friday to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump and possibly sign the deal.

President Trump on Tuesday appeared to confirm that Zelenskiy would be visiting the U.S. this week.

Ukraine is believed to have significant deposits of rare earths. Ukraine is one of the 10 leading countries in the world in terms of proven reserves of titanium and accounts for 7% of global production, according to the Ukrainian Geological Survey. 

Lithium, the critical mineral for the energy transition, is also found in Ukraine, although it is not currently mined in the country. Ukraine says its reserves account for nearly a third of the proven lithium reserves in Europe and about 3% of the world’s reserves.

Ukraine also has graphite reserves, which are about 19 million tons of ore with a natural graphite content of 5-8%. Nickel and cobalt are also found in the country, as are rare and rare earth metals such as tantalum, niobium, and beryllium.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

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