IperionX (ASX:IPX) has secured a contract for up to US$47.1 million ($74 million) in funding from the US Department of Defense to accelerate the development of the nation’s titanium supply chain.
The partnership represents a combined investment of up to US$70.7 million to fund a two-phase development program over two years, with IperionX to fund the remaining US$23.6 million.
For the initial phase, the US Government will fund US$5 million and IperionX will contribute US$1 million, with the cash to be applied to the feasibility studies for the company’s Titan Project in Tennessee.
The remaining funds will be used to facilitate vertical integration and increasing titanium production capacity at the Virginia Titanium Manufacturing Campus.
CEO Anastasios Arima says this award is a pivotal moment in the company’s mission to reshore the US titanium industry.
“For too long, American industry has been reliant on foreign-controlled supply chains for this critical high-strength metal,” Arima says.
“IperionX’s proprietary technologies, combined with the Titan Project, offer a pathway for a resilient end-to-end US titanium supply chain.”
Titanium is a critical resource for the aerospace, defense, automotive, space, and consumer industries. Despite this, the metal is high-cost and reliant on foreign supply chains.
IperionX says its mineral-to-metal titanium supply chain will support advanced US industries by delivering a low-cost, scalable and resilient solution.
IperionX is an American titanium metal and critical materials company focused on using patented technologies to produce high-performance titanium alloys, from scrap or titanium minerals, at lower energy, cost, and carbon emissions.
Write to Aaliyah Rogan at Mining.com.au
Images: IperionX
