The House of Commons Business, Innovation, Science and Trade Committee called on the UK government to create a dedicated Critical Minerals Finance Facility in a report dated 5 November 2026 and issued in London. It recommended public backing for strategic mining, refining and recycling projects in the UK and overseas to help address development risks that can keep projects from reaching construction.
The proposed facility would offer public equity, debt, guarantees and long-term offtake support. It is a recommendation to government, not an established funding programme or a decision to finance any named project, the committee said.
To coordinate existing public capabilities, the report proposed bringing together UK Research and Innovation, British International Investment, UK Export Finance and the National Wealth Fund. It also recommended staffing the facility with specialists in mining finance.
The committee called for institutional mandate changes so public capital could take equity stakes in mining projects, support strategically important international investments, and enter long-term purchase agreements or price-floor arrangements. Existing institutions are more comfortable with mature, lower-risk investments than development-stage mines and processing plants, which require substantial capital before commercial sales begin, the report said. The proposed model would move government beyond grant-based research support towards underwriting some development and commercial risk, with safeguards for project viability, public exposure and downstream benefit.
Recycling and domestic supply
The UK remains exposed to concentrated overseas mineral-processing capacity and lacks a coherent financing system for projects needed by defence, low-carbon industry and advanced technology, according to the committee. It said 80% of metal products classified as waste in the UK are exported instead of being retained for domestic processing.
The report valued UK copper waste and scrap exports at about €1.27 billion, and aluminium waste and scrap exports at more than €1.01 billion. Companies considering UK recycling must secure sufficient feedstock as well as install separation or refining equipment, it said.
High electricity costs, insufficient geological data, slow planning and gaps in specialist engineering skills were identified as obstacles to expanding domestic mineral supply. The committee recommended strategic critical-mineral clusters with more coordinated permits, grid access and finance, alongside stronger procurement incentives for supply-chain diversification.
The proposals depend on ministerial acceptance, legislation, institutional capacity and budget allocation. No financial envelope, application window or project-award timetable has been established. For developers, the report is a potential policy opening rather than an immediate source of capital; its effect on investment decisions will depend on whether the government establishes a facility able to take clearly defined project risk and mobilise private financing.
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