Biden looking overseas for electric vehicle metals: report

President Biden is reportedly planning to rely on metal from ally countries to build parts for electric vehicles (EV), part of an effort to please environmentalists, two sources close to the matter told Reuters.

Two administration officials told the news agency that Biden would be focusing on the domestic production of battery parts for EVs to create more jobs, instead of relying on domestically sourced metals.

The plan will reportedly rely on metals imported from Canada, Australia and Brazil, among others, to supply the raw materials needed to help the U.S. become less of a carbon-intensive economy. Reuters noted that the federal government has awarded grants to coal mines to find ways of producing rare earth materials.

A top White House climate official pushed back on the report in a statement to The Hill on Wednesday, saying the administration is pursuing mining in the U.S.

“President Biden is focused on seizing the electric vehicle (EV) market, sourcing and manufacturing the supply chain here in America, and creating good-paying, union jobs,” said deputy national climate adviser Ali Zaidi.

“Building American-made EVs and shipping them around the world will include leveraging American-made parts and resources. This includes responsibly pursuing, developing, and mining critical minerals and materials used for EV batteries,” Zaidi said.

The new move is a blow to U.S. miners, though it would cut down on America’s reliance on China for EV parts.

“It’s not that hard to dig a hole. What’s hard is getting that stuff out and getting it to processing facilities. That’s what the U.S. government is focused on,” one source said of the plan.

The administration officials told Reuters that Biden’s plan of procuring metals is meant to both appease environmentalists and reserve funds for other goals.

The entire plan will be finalized after a yearlong review of supply chains.

The U.S. government has invested in Brazilian and Canadian mining companies as well as various mining projects in Africa.

Updated on Wednesday at 10:30 a.m.