US Department of War offers $400M conditional loan to Sunrise Energy Metals for world's first primary scandium mine

Source: Staff Writer, Mining.com Date: August 7, 2026 | 5:22 pm

The Department of War’s Office of Strategic Capital (OSC) announced Friday a $400 million conditional loan commitment to Sunrise Energy Metals (ASX: SRL) to support the development of the company’s scandium operations in New South Wales, Australia.

The company is backed by mining billionaire Robert Friedland, who stated that the Syerston project “will be the world’s first source of primary mine supply for scandium end-users.”

Key Facts

• Current scandium supply: Scandium is currently harvested as a byproduct of other industrial or resource extraction processes. No primary mine-source scandium supply exists globally.
• Foreign dominance: Foreign competitors account for approximately 80% of global mining production and nearly 100% of scandium processing.
• Project scope: With the loan and private capital, Sunrise plans to develop a full scandium value chain, starting with primary mining at Syerston. The company will also build metallization and additive layer manufacturing capabilities to ensure Western alignment from mine to finished product.
• US defense alignment: The financing grants the Department of War a right of first offer on Sunrise’s output. The scandium produced would support demand from US companies, including those in the defense industrial base.

Official Statement

“The contemplated Sunrise transaction marks a significant step in establishing supply chain resiliency for an increasingly critical mineral. This nearly $1 billion deal, bringing together public and private capital, would help address foreign dependencies in scandium supply and facilitate scandium’s use in critical defense and commercial applications.”

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— David A. Lorch, Director of the Office of Strategic Capital

Supply Chain Concerns

Claims of a China-free scandium supply chain are also being tested in the private sector:

• Bloom Energy, based in San Jose, is the West’s largest consumer of scandium oxide, using an estimated 30 tonnes in 2025—roughly half of global consumption, according to short-seller Hunterbrook Media.
• On July 8, Hunterbrook alleged that Chinese scandium oxide was still reaching Bloom through Thailand, Japan, and South Korea.
• In a July 9 filing, Bloom described the report’s financial claims as false and misleading and rejected its conclusions about the company’s scandium sourcing.

Production Outlook

• The USGS estimates global production totaled about 80 tonnes in 2025.
• Sunrise Energy Metals’ Syerston project is designed to produce 60 tonnes annually and is one of several proposed non-Chinese sources. Construction has yet to begin.

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