The US Defense Logistics Agency, a division of the US Department of War, has awarded contracts worth US$1.8 billion ($2.58 billion) to three companies for the supply of steel and other metals.
The largest award has gone to Metallus (NYSE:MTUS) for US$995 million. The funding is designated for the company’s High Fragmentation One Steel, a proprietary steel alloy that is used as a component of large-caliber artillery and mortar projectiles. The contract is an indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity agreement.
Metallus’ award spans five years for supply to the US Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, and Space Force.
The company received an initial delivery order under the contract for around US$125 million, with up to 24 months to fulfil the order.
T&T Materials and TW Metals received a shared US$750 million contract for commercially available metal products. This award covers a two-year period with the potential to extend for four additional two-year periods.
The Pentagon’s US$1.8 billion metals contracts underscore how defence-grade demand is reshaping the domestic supply chain. For US junior exploration companies, the signal is clear: Washington is prepared to back long-term procurement of strategic materials, creating downstream pull for new discoveries and feedstock security.
Juniors advancing projects in steelmaking inputs, alloy metals, and critical minerals have a stronger case to attract both public and private capital, knowing that federal buyers are anchoring demand for the next generation of US-sourced supply.
Write to Amy Rotman at Mining.com.au
Main image: Getty images
