South Africa hosts the Investing in African Mining Indaba at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) from 8 to 12 February 2026, with Minister of Mineral and Petroleum Resources, Mr Gwede Mantashe,

Countries are racing to secure the critical minerals and rare earths needed to make vital products.

President Donald Trump’s desire to claim Greenland for the U.S. has thrust the island’s wealth of natural resources firmly into the spotlight. Part of Greenland’s appeal, indeed, comes from both the vastness of the territory and the variety of its geological features.

House lawmakers passed Rep. Pete Stauber's (R-MN) bill aimed at speeding up and boosting the mining of critical minerals.

The U.S. is mobilizing allies into a preferential trade bloc for critical minerals as part of efforts to counter China's dominance in the market.

The Trump administration is pushing to create a trade system installing price floors for critical minerals in its push to break away from China.

He described the conclave, held with the support of Vijnana Bharati, CSIR–Central Institute of Mining and Fuel Research and Techsmin, as a strong step towards deepening industry–academia collaboration.

The Orion Critical Mineral Consortium has signed a deal to acquire mining assets in the war-ravaged country that leads the world in cobalt production.

This story was originally published by Grist with the headline Indigenous concerns surface as Trump calls for seabed mining in Alaskan waters on Feb 5, 2026.