Critical minerals and rare earths are essential to modern economies, powering advanced manufacturing, energy systems and defense capabilities. As global demand rises and supply chains face increasing geopolitical and commercial pressure, the United States and Argentina have a shared interest in building trusted, diversified, and market-based supply chains that reduce strategic vulnerabilities and expand opportunity for workers, innovators, and communities across the hemisphere.
Argentina is well positioned to be a strategic partner to strengthen supply security, attract investment, and support greater regional integration across the critical minerals value chain.
The country holds extraordinary geological wealth, including the world’s third-largest lithium reserves located at the “lithium-triangle”, major copper deposits with the potential to become one of the world’s top six producers by 2035, and significant gold and silver resources, along with rare earths and other strategic minerals with strong future potential; combined with a renewed regulatory and investment environment that is actively welcoming to private capital. Argentina has recently undertaken ambitious structural reforms, including the Incentive Regime for Large Investments (RIGI), which offers 30 years of fiscal, regulatory, and foreign exchange stability. Since the launch of the RIGI, Argentina has attracted tens of billions of dollars in announced and prospective investments across mining and energy, with 12 projects already approved totaling more than US$26 billion. The sector’s potential for Argentina’s economic development is substantial: Argentina’s mining exports reached a record US$6.04 billion in 2025, up nearly 30% year-on-year, and are projected to grow significantly, potentially exceeding US$25 billion annually over the next decade.
The bilateral relationship between Argentina and the United States has never been stronger, and the minerals sphere is no exception. Both governments signed the “Argentine Republic – United States Framework for Securing of Supply in the Mining and Processing of Critical Minerals” in February 2026, during the first Ministerial Meeting on Critical Minerals convened by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio. The Reciprocal Trade and Investment Agreement further underscores the two countries’ commitment to facilitate investment, trade, and cooperation in this sector.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce though its U.S.-Argentina Business Council and the American Chamber of Commerce in Argentina (AmCham Argentina) as leading representatives of the U.S.-Argentine private sector, welcome and strongly endorse this strategic partnership. We present below a business-driven proposal to operationalize and deepen bilateral cooperation, translating government commitments into concrete investment flows, technological partnerships, and sustainable economic growth.
- Operationalizing the Bilateral Critical Minerals Framework: The February 2026 Framework for Securing of Supply in the Mining and Processing of Critical Minerals provides an essential foundation, but its value will be determined by implementation. We call on both governments to publish a Priority Projects List within the agreed six-month timeline. We also propose to establish a “Joint Private Sector Advisory Committee”, co-chaired by the U.S.-Argentina Business Council and AmCham Argentina, with formal channels to provide input to Argentina’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, International Trade and Worship and the Argentine Secretariat of Mining, as well as the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Energy Resources and the U.S. Department of Energy.
- Project Financing and Investment Mobilization: Access to long-term, competitively priced capital remains one of the critical constraints for accelerating Argentina’s mining value chain. We propose a fast-track activation of the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) and U.S. Export-Import Bank (EXIM) financing instruments for Priority Projects identified under the Framework. Through Exim Bank, the U.S. has committed up to US$100 billion to securing allied supply chains in critical minerals; Argentina should be positioned as a primary beneficiary. Also, Argentina’s RIGI regime, offering 30 years of fiscal and regulatory stability for investments exceeding US$200 million, should be actively promoted to U.S. investors.
- Technology, and Value-Added Development: Argentina currently exports predominantly raw and intermediate mineral products. Argentina’s strategic objective (and a core interest of the U.S. in de-risking its supply chains) is to develop domestic processing capacity for critical minerals, particularly lithium battery-grade products and copper cathodes. This requires technology transfer and industrial partnerships. We propose launching a “U.S.-Argentina Critical Minerals Partnership”, pairing U.S. companies with Argentine mining operators and provincial development agencies.
- Infrastructure Development: Argentina’s mineral wealth is geographically concentrated in the Andean northwest, Patagonia and Cuyo. These regions face significant infrastructure deficits that constrain the cost-competitiveness of Argentine mineral exports and limit the development of new projects. Mining infrastructure (specifically road corridors, rail connections to ports, and power supply for remote operations) should be included in the Priority Projects List and made eligible for bilateral financing alongside mining projects themselves. We also recommend engaging the U.S. private sector in infrastructure development through Public-Private Partnership (PPP) structures, leveraging the ARTI to provide U.S. engineering and construction companies with clear access to Argentine infrastructure tenders. Large operators can also support delivery by making anchor investments that reduce project risk and enable shared-use infrastructure, especially in remote mining regions.
The alignment of Argentina’s geological wealth, its historic regulatory reforms and the United States’ strategic interest in supply chain diversification creates a window of opportunity that must not be missed. The private sector is ready to invest, partner, and build. We call on both governments to act with urgency and ambition to make this partnership a durable model for the hemisphere.