# The Pentagon buys its way back into tungsten

> A $450 million equity stake aims to rebuild a metal supply chain China controls 85 percent of.
- Title: The Pentagon buys its way back into tungsten · Dallas Express
- Summary: A $450 million equity stake aims to rebuild a metal supply chain China controls 85 percent of. The Pentagon is taking equity stakes in…
- Keywords: defense, supply chain, tungsten, manufacturing, china, news, politics, Pentagon, buys, way, back, Dallas Express
- Source: Dallas Express — https://dallasexpress.com/national/pentagon-commits-450-million-to-expand-u-s-tungsten-production
- Author: Dallas Express
- Published: 2026-09-14T16:52:36+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: defense, supply chain, tungsten, manufacturing, china, news, politics
## $450 million for a metal
The Department of War committed $450 million to expand domestic tungsten production, structured as a redeemable preferred equity investment rather than a straight grant.
## Why tungsten matters
It is hard, dense, and holds up under extreme heat, which makes it a key input for missiles, munitions, aerospace, propulsion, naval and undersea systems, and electronics.
## One company, 100 programs
The Elmet Group is the only U.S.-owned fully integrated producer of tungsten and molybdenum parts. It supports the F-35, Patriot PAC-3, Trident D5, and Virginia- and Columbia-class submarines.
## China holds the choke point
China controls an estimated 85 percent of world tungsten output and 40 percent of molybdenum. The money funds North America's only independent ammonium paratungstate facility.

> identify critical industrial chokepoints before adversaries can exploit them and before they become battlefield risk
## Jobs in four states
New high-tech roles land in Coldwater, Michigan and Lewiston, Maine, existing work stays in Euclid, Ohio, and Nevada mining demand rises. About 1,200 downstream positions are tied to it.
## Equity, not a handout
The preferred equity structure lets the government recoup its money, a deliberate contrast with grant funding. Officials frame it as protecting taxpayers while shoring up the production base.

> pairing targeted Department support with a disciplined preferred equity structure
## Key takeaway

The Pentagon is taking equity stakes in single-point-of-failure suppliers, treating industrial chokepoints as a battlefield risk to be fixed before a war, not during one.