President Trump is planning to announce over $180 million in grants to boost educational and trade programs for the mining industry Friday, CBS News has learned, part of a bid to increase critical mineral production.
Mr. Trump will unveil the plans at a roundtable at the State Department with educational leaders from universities like the Colorado School of Mines, a White House official told CBS News. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum and Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick are also slated to participate.
The Department of Energy is launching a $100 million grant program aimed at expanding the mining and critical mineral workforce by dramatically increasing the number of people with degrees in those areas over the next two years. The program is expected to financially support scholarships and other programs, an official said. Universities, community colleges, trade schools, industry groups and other partners will be eligible to apply.
The military is also offering more than $80 million in additional funding to three universities.
The Colorado School of Mines is expected to get $32.7 million for a tech development hub, the South Dakota School of Mines will get $25 million to set up workforce development programs and Johns Hopkins University will get $23.6 million for a recycling-focused program.
The grant programs come as the Trump administration pushes to increase U.S. production of critical minerals like lithium, silicon, graphite and rare-earth elements. Those materials are essential for making semiconductors, aerospace equipment and many other modern technologies, but China mines and refines an outsized share of the world’s critical minerals.
Mr. Trump has also sought to boost the coal mining industry. His administration pledged $700 million in grants to coal plants and a coal export terminal in June, and it has eased environmental regulations that restricted the coal industry.
