Critical minerals form an important part of the India-US bilateral partnership, with recent developments including the Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies (iCET) and the signing of the recent (October 2024) MoU on critical minerals supply chains. The latter is one of the few examples of India’s bilateral cooperation on critical minerals and aims to leverage the two countries’ ‘complementary strengths to ensure greater resilience in the critical minerals sector’.
The India-US partnership is increasingly aimed at developing closer ties through technology and clean energy cooperation in the critical mineral sector. Some areas of priority under the MoU therefore include identifying ‘equipment, services, policies, and best practices to facilitate the mutually beneficial commercial development of the US and Indian critical minerals’ along the global supply chains.
Growing demand for a clean energy transition is driving more countries to look for diversified supply sources for critical minerals. In the race to power a green economic future, critical minerals like lithium, cobalt, and rare earth elements are essential resources driving the global shift to clean energy, advanced technology, and defence innovation. Yet, the world faces a stark reality: China controls 60% of global rare earth mining and a staggering 80% of its processing capacity, creating an overdependence on a single nation. Recently, trade war tensions escalated between China and the US with the Biden administration’s crackdown on China’s semiconductor industry. In retaliation, Beijing banned exports of key critical minerals to the US, citing ‘dual-use’ concerns. This highlights the need to diversify supply chains to reduce reliance on a single dominant supplier.
As the second and third highest emitters global CO₂, both the United States (13%) and India (8%) are rapidly moving towards ensuring a green energy transition. For India, with its ambitious target of achieving 500 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2030 and electrifying 30% of its vehicles, the stakes couldn’t be higher. Meanwhile, the US, with over $17 million in investments to secure critical mineral supply chains, is ramping up efforts to counter China’s quasi-monopoly.
This is where an India-US partnership becomes not merely beneficial but a strategic imperative. The two nations can build a resilient and diversified supply chain for critical minerals. India’s ambition to become a global manufacturing hub is advancing rapidly, driven by its renewable energy goals. Meanwhile, the U.S. brings technological expertise and significant financial resources to the table. These strengths create the foundation for a strong and mutually beneficial partnership. Together, they can secure their energy transitions, boost bilateral trade (already at a record $191 billion in 2022), and create a powerful counterweight to China.
The question, therefore, is less about why India and the US should partner on critical minerals—and more about finding ways of how they can turn this opportunity into a transformative partnership. After outlining the history of the India-US partnership, this article goes into laying out why the two should collaborate in the critical minerals sector, highlighting the 80% overlap between the lists of minerals for both countries. It discusses how critical minerals cooperation is and can be further embedded into the climate and energy partnership. It also gives some policy options to enhance collaboration in the sector.
Growing role of energy, tech and trade nexus in the India-US partnership
Critical minerals have emerged as a cornerstone of the growing India-US partnership, strengthening their energy, technology, and trade linkages. As India’s External Affairs Minister highlighted, both countries “value the strides we are making in our tech collaboration and economic partnership”. This bilateral relationship is founded on shared interests, democratic values, strategic alignment, and economic potential, evolving into a robust partnership over three decades. Chietigj Bajpaee identifies three pillars: shared democratic values, countering China, and India’s economic growth.
India’s growing economy, projected to be the third largest by 2030, aligns with US ‘friendshoring’ strategies to reduce reliance on China. Shared goals include building resilient supply chains, expanding collaboration in emerging technologies like clean energy, semiconductors, and critical minerals, and tapping into India’s digital and information technology (IT) strengths. Despite challenges like infrastructure and protectionism, India’s aspirations as a manufacturing hub complement US interests, further strengthening this vital partnership. India’s growing influence in critical and emerging technologies also creates opportunities for collaboration with the US, particularly in high-value sectors like clean energy, semiconductors, and critical minerals.
India and the US have witnessed a rapid evolution in their collaboration on energy, climate, and technology, driven by a convergence of strategic interests and shared global challenges. Key initiatives such as the U.S.-India Climate and Clean Energy Agenda 2030 Partnership and the Strategic Clean Energy Partnership (SCEP) reflect the growing alignment between the two nations on energy security and climate resilience. These frameworks emphasise joint efforts in clean energy innovation, decarbonisation technologies, and sustainable infrastructure, positioning the partnership as a critical pillar of bilateral cooperation. As both countries seek to mitigate supply chain vulnerabilities and reduce dependency on China for critical resources, this collaboration underscores the geopolitical importance of resilient, diversified supply chains in an increasingly multipolar world order.
A significant development reinforcing this trajectory is the Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies (iCET), launched in 2023. Designed to deepen bilateral ties in semiconductors, artificial intelligence, quantum computing, and critical minerals, iCET illustrates how technology-driven collaboration is central to ensuring economic security and strategic autonomy. By focusing on critical minerals, the initiative plays a vital role in enhancing supply chain resilience and fostering joint research and development efforts.
As the geopolitical landscape continues to shift, India and the US are well-positioned to leverage these growing areas of cooperation to enhance their influence in critical sectors shaping the 21st-century global economy. By aligning their priorities in critical mineral development, both nations are strengthening the foundation of their partnership and advancing shared goals in energy security, technological innovation, and economic growth.
Expanding India-US Collaboration on Critical Minerals
The partnership between India and the United States on critical minerals has evolved significantly, underscoring the importance of international cooperation in securing resilient supply chains. Despite shared ambitions for self-reliance, both countries have recognised that collaboration, not isolation, offers the best path to meeting the rising global demand for these strategic resources.
There are four factors driving India-US cooperation on critical minerals: (1) America’s deepening international partnerships in this sector, (2) the 80% overlap between the critical minerals identified by India and the US, (3) the shared history of India-US clean energy partnerships, and (4) the developing national security and technology collaborations between the two partners.
American policy thinking on critical minerals can be seen to develop after the 2010 Chinese export ban on Japan of crucial minerals needed for semiconductors and automobiles over maritime disputes. The 2010 incident can be considered the lynchpin that set off the strategic thinking and highlighted the policy need for ensuring reliable and secure access to critical minerals.
Policy development picked up more wind as the need for critical minerals became more apparent as did concerns over Chinese monopoly of supply chains. America has significantly focused on developing its domestic capacity on mineral mapping, mining, and processing. While much of the developments have focused on ensuring domestic capacity and stockpiling of critical minerals, at the same time, the US has also been on the front foot in recognising the significance of international cooperation for critical minerals (see Table 2). Not only has it inked various bilateral partnerships (e.g. Canada, Australia, Japan, South Korea, and India), the US has also been the shaping international cooperation frameworks such as the Minerals Security Partnership.
Out of the 50 critical minerals identified by the US in its list of critical minerals (2022), 40 of them overlap (see Figure 1) with India’s list of critical minerals (2023). There is an 80% overlap between minerals identified by both countries showcasing potential for cooperation, especially in third geographies such as Africa. This is because many of the minerals identified are Platinum Group Metals or Rare Earth Elements (REEs), which are geographically located in Africa. India also has deposits of various REEs such as thorium and light REEs such as neodymium, praseodymium, dysprosium, and terbium. International collaborations, such as the one between Indian Rare Earth Limited (IREL) and Toyotsu Rare Earth India Limited (subsidiary of Toyoto Tsusho Corporation, Japan), has significant potential for India and the US to further strengthen collaboration for mutual benefit.
