British mining company Altona Rare Earths announced on Monday, February 9, that it has secured confirmation of U.S. support for the development of its Monte Muambe rare earth project in Mozambique, according to Ecofin Agency.
The backing comes from the United States Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) and underscores Washington’s accelerating push into Africa’s emerging rare earths sector.
The move is part of a broader U.S. strategy to counter China’s near dominance of the rare earths market, which currently accounts for around 70% of global production.
In recent months, the United States has increased efforts to develop alternative supply chains, with Africa gradually emerging as a key focus. Several U.S.-backed financing initiatives have already been announced across the continent.
In Angola, British company Pensana, which is developing the Longonjo project to supply the U.S. market, is seeking up to $160 million in financing from the U.S. Export-Import Bank (EXIM).
Meanwhile, Washington is supporting South Africa’s Phalaborwa project through a grant from the Development Finance Corporation (DFC), via investment firm TechMet.
Lindian Resources, operator of Malawi’s Kangankunde project, has also entered discussions with the U.S. government to position its asset as a potential lever to help address the United States’ “emerging supply deficit.”
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It is within this strategic context that U.S. support for Mozambique’s Monte Muambe project has been confirmed, with a formal grant agreement currently under preparation.
Altona Rare Earths CEO Cédric Simonet said the USTDA’s commitment “represents significant external validation of Monte Muambe’s strategic quality and economic potential and highlights the strong, high-level interest of a leading U.S. government institution in developing a secure alternative source of rare earths.”
Few details have been disclosed regarding the specific terms of the potential partnership between Altona and the USTDA.
The exact nature of U.S. support remains to be clarified for the project, whose development cost was estimated at $276.3 million in a 2023 preliminary study.
Altona aims to produce an average of about 15,000 tons per year of mixed rare earth carbonate over a mine life of 18 years.
These parameters are currently being revised as part of a prefeasibility study, which is more advanced than the earlier preliminary economic assessment.
U.S. interest in Monte Muambe has already increased Mozambique’s visibility within Africa’s emerging rare earths sector.
The country hosts other projects at earlier stages, including Adriano, where Australian junior MRG Metals Limited announced in October 2025 the discovery of a potential alluvial rare earth deposit.
Attention now turns to how these developments will evolve in the coming months, both regarding U.S. ambitions for Monte Muambe and Mozambique’s positioning in related policy discussions.
While Africa currently produces none of these minerals, which are critical for wind turbines and electric vehicles, the continent could account for around 9% of global rare earth supply by 2029, according to Benchmark Mineral Intelligence.
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Image Credit: Africa Press
