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Investment aims to counter China's mineral supply

restrictions

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Orion Critical Mineral Consortium targets $5 billion

growth

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Focus on production-ready projects to supply U.S. and

allies

(Updates with interview with Orion executives)

By Ernest Scheyder

Oct 23 (Reuters) - The U.S. and Abu Dhabi governments

will invest $1.8 billion into mining and refining projects

across the globe with private equity fund Orion Resource

Partners to bolster Western access to lithium, rare earths and

other critical minerals.

The investment plan, announced on Thursday, comes as market

leader China crimps access to critical minerals even as demand

jumps globally across the economy, forcing manufacturers and

others to jostle for fresh supply.

The U.S. International Development Finance Corp (DFC), which

is controlled by Washington, Orion, and the Abu Dhabi sovereign

wealth fund ADQ, have contributed $1.8 billion - $600 million

each - to the newly formed Orion Critical Mineral Consortium.

The consortium, which hopes to grow to $5 billion with

funds from others across the globe, aims to quickly get minerals

supply to market and plans to avoid exploration-stage projects.

"What we're focused on is projects that are in production or

can be put into production in the very near term to get material

back to the U.S. and allied nations," said Frank Fannon, the

consortium's managing partner who served as U.S. assistant

secretary of state for energy resources during President Donald

Trump's first term.

For other potential investors, Fannon said Orion would seek

those with a "shared value and shared understanding" of the need

to boost Western access to critical minerals.

Orion's announcement comes two days after private equity

firm Appian Capital Advisory and the International Finance

Corporation

launched their own $1 billion fund

to invest in minerals projects in Africa and Latin America.

Orion plans to "go where the rocks are" and invest in mines

across the globe as well as the processing facilities needed to

turn metals into the building blocks for batteries and other

equipment, Fannon said.

"We are absolutely committed to funding the supply chain to

the extent necessary to secure end-stage product for customers

and consumers," said Oskar Lewnowski, Orion's founder and CEO.

Orion will focus its investments on minerals considered

critical by the U.S., Canada, the European Union and Australia,

as well as copper and uranium, both executives said.

The DFC, which also holds a stake in mining firm

TechMet

, will be involved in investment decisions and that

involvement should help reduce any project's geopolitical risk,

the executives said.

"The (U.S.) government certainly brings a lot to bear,

particularly in emerging market contexts, and that makes

investments that much more tenable for us," Lewnowski said.

When asked if Orion was interested in

Ukraine's mining sector

, Lewnowski said: "Ukraine has some very interesting rocks.

And let's leave it at that."

The Trump administration has

taken equity stakes

directly in MP Materials ( MP ), Lithium Americas ( LAC ),

and others, underscoring Washington's increasing willingness to

directly involve itself in the private mining sector.

Critical mineral companies have also boosted U.S. lobbying

efforts, hoping to share in the ambitious investments that Trump

has pledged to firms deemed essential to national security.