Pentagon invests $450 million in Elmet Group for tungsten supply

September 30, 2026 at 05:03 AM2 min

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The U.S. Defense Department announced a $450 million investment in The Elmet Group to strengthen the domestic tungsten supply chain for military weapons. The investment comes as a federal procurement rule barring tungsten from China, Russia, Iran and North Korea nears its Jan. 1 deadline. Elmet is the only U.S.-owned, fully integrated producer of tungsten and molybdenum materials and components.

Key Facts

The Defense Department announced a $450 million investment in The Elmet Group this month.
A federal procurement rule barring tungsten from China, Russia, Iran and North Korea takes effect Jan. 1.
Elmet supports more than 100 defense programs, including Patriot, Javelin, AEGIS, Trident II and THAAD.
China controls about 85% of the world's tungsten supply and 40% of its molybdenum.
The U.S. has not mined tungsten since 2015.

Investment Rationale

The Defense Department said it chose Elmet because it is "the only U.S.-owned, fully integrated producer of tungsten and molybdenum materials and components." Michael Cadenazzi, assistant secretary for industrial base policy, said the investment reflects the department's commitment to rebuilding critical industrial capacity. He added that it will strengthen supply chain resilience, support high-quality manufacturing jobs, and reinforce the production base behind essential defense systems.

Tungsten Market Dynamics

Critical-minerals analyst Chris Berry said China dominates the global tungsten supply chain, while the U.S. has not mined tungsten since 2015. Berry argued that rising tungsten prices are "due almost exclusively to policy choices in Beijing and Washington." He said those policies have created "two distinct markets" and driven a rapid increase in prices. According to government data, China controls about 85% of the world's tungsten supply and 40% of its molybdenum.

Defense Applications

Tungsten is used to manufacture military weapons ranging from bullets to missiles. Berry said the metal is also used for fabricating semiconductors for AI data centers and called it "a must-have" for the defense industry. Tungsten has the highest melting point of any metal and is roughly as dense as gold. When combined with carbon, it forms tungsten carbide, an extremely hard material used in industrial and military applications. Elmet supports more than 100 defense programs, including Patriot, Javelin, AEGIS, Trident II and THAAD, as well as Virginia- and Columbia-class submarines.