Sovereign Supply Chains: 5 Domestic Critical Mineral Plays in the 2026 Landscape

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Jan. 22, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- USANewsGroup.com News Commentary – The Pentagon's strategic acceleration of a critical minerals stockpiling mandate^[1] signals a generational realignment away from vulnerable procurement models. As Western governments deepen investments to counteract concentrated global processing capacity^[2], the focus has shifted to domestic assets with inelastic production profiles like indium and antimony. GoldHaven Resources (CSE:GOH) (OTCQB:GHVNF), American Resources (NASDAQ:AREC), Electra Battery Materials (NASDAQ:ELBM) (TSXV:ELBM), Americas Gold and Silver (NYSE-A: USAS) (TSX:USA), and Western Copper and Gold (NYSE-A: WRN) (TSX:WRN) anchor the North American response to this sovereign sanctuary rotation.

Industry analysts project that strategic industrial policy will dictate capital flows throughout the 2026 cycle^[3] as supply bottlenecks threaten the defense and semiconductor sectors. Geopolitical enforcement of rare earth export controls^[4] creates asymmetric upside for domestic asset holders controlling sanctuary based resources essential to Western technological superiority.

GoldHaven Resources (CSE:GOH) (OTCQB:GHVNF) has confirmed a significant critical mineral discovery at its Magno Property in British Columbia, with 2025 surface assays returning values up to 334 ppm indium across high-priority zones, having identified a significant indium enrichment event in its latest announcement.

The discovery adds a strategically critical mineral component to the polymetallic system, with elevated indium values spatially restricted to the Magno and D Zones and the Kuhn and Dead Goat showings, areas characterized by zinc-rich mineralization and structurally controlled fluid pathways.

Indium is one of the most supply-constrained critical minerals designated by both the United States and Canada. Because global production is a byproduct of zinc refining, supply cannot easily scale to meet the skyrocketing demand for touchscreens, semiconductors, and advanced defense technologies. The metal plays an essential and largely non-substitutable role in touchscreens, flat-panel displays, compound semiconductors, fiber-optic communications, and thin-film solar technologies, linking indium demand directly to clean energy transition, advanced manufacturing, and defense applications.

The 334 ppm indium samples at Magno are already benchmarking favorably against the Mt. Pleasant deposit in New Brunswick, which reports indicated resources in the 45 to 275 grams per tonne range. The comparison, while preliminary and non-resource in nature, validates continued evaluation of indium as a meaningful exploration vector as GoldHaven refines its understanding of the mineral system.

"The completion of this additional geochemical interpretation represents an important step in advancing the Magno Property," said Rob Birmingham, CEO of GoldHaven. "By applying a consistent, modern geochemical approach across the property, we were able to confirm meaningful indium enrichment and its association with zinc-rich mineralization in key zones. While Magno remains at an early stage, these results increase our understanding of the mineral system and will help guide ongoing geological interpretation and future drill targeting as we vector towards potential porphyry sources."

The indium findings build on GoldHaven's recent confirmation of anomalous tungsten mineralization at Magno, with tungsten values up to 6,550 ppm alongside bonanza silver grades reaching 2,370 grams per tonne and lead values exceeding 20%. Beyond British Columbia, the company has completed diamond drilling at its Copeçal Gold Project in Brazil and confirmed high-grade copper at Three Guardsmen.

GoldHaven now controls 133,186 hectares across proven mining jurisdictions with multiple projects advancing simultaneously. With assay results pending from Brazil and a district-scale asset in BC, the company is positioned to capitalize on the structural demand for strategic domestic resources.

CONTINUED… Read this and more news for GoldHaven Resources at:

https://usanewsgroup.com/2025/09/23/the-goldhaven-story-two-continents-one-strategy-systematic-exploration-in-historically-productive-districts/

In other industry developments and happenings in the market include:

American Resources (NASDAQ:AREC) announced the world's first utility token for critical minerals through its minority holding in ReElement Technologies, demonstrating technical readiness to support compliance with the U.S. Department of Defense's DFARS requirements. The blockchain-based utility token, developed with SAGINT Inc., establishes immutable end-to-end traceability for refined neodymium oxide produced at ReElement's Noblesville facility, creating a tamper-resistant provenance record that captures material origin, processing integrity, and mass balance.

"This milestone represents an advancement in securing America's critical mineral supply chains," said Jacob Clayton, CEO of SAGINT. "By minting this utility token, we're not only demonstrating readiness for DFARS compliance but also establishing a framework for traceability that supports U.S. manufacturers."

ReElement and SAGINT plan to expand the platform throughout 2026 to additional rare earth oxides, battery materials, and defense-critical minerals. The integrated blockchain infrastructure will be deployed across ReElement's Marion Supersite and future refining facilities to deliver the traceability and compliance required by defense, industrial, and government customers while strengthening supply-chain resilience and national security.

Electra Battery Materials (NASDAQ:ELBM) (TSXV:ELBM) provided construction progress updates at North America's first cobalt sulfate refinery, with crews completing installation of exterior pipe racks connecting the leach plant, solvent extraction building, and crystallizer. Current site work focuses on civil, structural, concrete, and tankage installation while maintaining a strong safety culture, with key suppliers and contractors engaged to support detailed execution planning and budget refinement.

"Momentum continues to build across the project," said Paolo Toscano, VP Projects and Engineering for Electra. "Strong planning and close collaboration with our partners are translating into tangible progress on the ground."

With construction financing and permits secured, along with the majority of long-lead equipment in place and core infrastructure established, current efforts center on sequencing work and preparing for integration of the refinery's mechanical systems. Electra is advancing toward targeted 2027 commissioning, positioning the facility to produce battery-grade cobalt supporting supply reliability for North American markets while reducing reliance on foreign supply chains.

Americas Gold and Silver (NYSE-A: USAS) (TSX:USA) expanded the 034 Vein Complex with discovery of eight new high-grade silver-copper-antimony splay veins at its Galena Complex in Idaho, delivering intercepts including 4,458 g/t silver, 3.34% copper and 1.50% antimony over 0.5 meters. The exploration drilling from the 5200 Level identified veins with potential economic continuity representing 100 meters vertical extent, with preliminary estimates indicating an exploration target of 550,000 to 650,000 tonnes at 290-310 g/t silver, 0.20-0.30% copper, and 0.15-0.20% antimony adjacent to current infrastructure.

"Our team at Galena have delivered another very impressive discovery at our flagship operation," said Paul Andre Huet, Chairman and CEO of Americas Gold and Silver. "The identification of eight new high-grade silver-copper-antimony splay veins has grown the 034 Vein discovery last year into an entire complex of high-grade veins now called the 034 Vein Complex. Galena has a long and storied history of silver, copper, lead and antimony production and this new discovery is a true testament to the outstanding potential of Galena to continue to grow as one of the highest-grade silver operations globally."

The 034 Vein Complex remains open both up-dip and at depth with multiple mining opportunities being evaluated for addition to the 2026 mine plan. Americas Gold and Silver operates as a rapidly growing North American precious metals and antimony producer following December 2024 acquisition of 100% ownership of the Galena Complex and December 2025 acquisition of the fully permitted Crescent Silver Mine.

Western Copper and Gold (NYSE-A: WRN) (TSX:WRN) strengthened its leadership team with the appointments of Robert Dirk as Chief Operating Officer and Christian Roldan as Vice President Technical to advance the Casino Project. Dirk brings 37 years of mining operations experience including leadership roles at Suncor Energy and Kaz Minerals, while Roldan contributes over 25 years of international experience across the full mine lifecycle including previous work advancing projects through environmental assessment in the Yukon.

"We are very pleased to welcome Robert and Christian to the Western team," said Sandeep Singh, President and CEO of Western Copper and Gold. "They bring major-company experience that matches the scale and standards required for Casino – Canada's largest critical minerals project. These appointments strengthen our ability to move through our permitting process and advance technical work, while continuing to de-risk the project."

The Casino Project represents Canada's premier copper-gold development opportunity in Yukon's Golden Triangle. Western Copper and Gold remains committed to advancing the project using internationally recognized responsible mining technologies while working collaboratively with First Nations and local communities.

Article Source: https://usanewsgroup.com/goh-profile/

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SOURCES CITED:

1. https://www.fastmarkets.com/insights/us-critical-minerals-security-drive-brings-new-era-of-stockpiling-project-investment/
2. https://www.spglobal.com/energy/en/news-research/latest-news/metals/010926-us-eu-to-further-intensify-critical-mineral-investments-as-china-tightens-hold
3. https://www.mining.com/global-scramble-for-critical-minerals-to-shape-markets-in-2026-bmi/
4. https://warontherocks.com/2026/01/the-burn-and-the-choke-why-semiconductor-controls-will-outlast-chinas-rare-earth-weapon/