As perhaps a sign of things to come with overseas producers, The Financial Times reports Vedanta Resources is shifting ownership of its Zambian copper operations into a U.S.‐based subsidiary, CopperTech Metals. A significant driver of the move: an effort to tap U.S. financing and benefit from Trump administration efforts to secure mineral supply chains.

And in Colorado, debate is heating up over the future of two units at the state's largest coal power plants -- Craig Unit 1 and Comanche Unit 2 – set to for retirement. Citing a grid reliability emergency, supporters of the two plants have petitioned the Department of Energy to issue emergency orders to keep the plants running. It's a development worth watching.

And as testament to the remarkable ingenuity and magic of mining, Resolution Copper has reached a major milestone with the completion of its multi-year rehabilitation and deepening of its historic No. 9 Shaft. The refurbished and deepened shaft now extends to a final depth of 6,898 feet underground, nearly five Empire State Buildings tall. It's a significant step in paving the way for production of one nation's most important new sources of copper and critical minerals.