What Ukraine gains from minerals deal with US: Expert opinion
Illustrative photo: Ukraine will receive new technologies for exploring minerals (wikimedia.org)
Ukraine can get modern subsoil exploration technologies and accurate estimates of deposits from the United States. That will open the way for production development, Olena Remezova, Doctor of Science in Geology, Chief of Mineral Deposits Geology Department of the Institute of Geological Sciences of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, says in an interview with RBC-Ukraine.
Ukraine's cooperation with the United States in the extraction of rare earth metals can be an important step for the development of the national economy.
In addition to obtaining advanced technologies for the operational exploration of deposits, Ukraine will be able to start working following international standards for calculating reserves.
It will allow for a more accurate assessment of mineral resources in Ukraine and will help create new jobs in this area, which is important for the development of the domestic labor market.
Currently, the country has almost no production of rare metals, but the attraction of investments and technologies from the United States may change that.
About the natural resources deal with the US
On May 1, Ukraine and the United States signed an agreement to establish the US-Ukraine Reconstruction Investment Fund with equal participation of the parties.
The document, signed by First Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Economy Yuliia Svyrydenko and US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, comes as a result of lengthy negotiations between the two countries and was even the subject of controversy. As the government said, Ukraine managed to achieve favorable conditions for itself.
The fund will invest in mining, oil, and gas projects, as well as related infrastructure or processing. The specific investment projects from the funds will be determined jointly by Ukraine and the United States.
According to the Ministry of Economy, Ukraine's contribution from revenues will involve not only new but also inactive licenses.
