Lockheed's Three-Metal Bid Stops at Ore, Concentrate, and Recycled Feed

Lockheed Martin's three North American partners each close a different link in the scandium and germanium supply chain: ore from a Nebraska mine under development, germanium concentrate from an existing Alaska zinc operation, and recycled germanium feed from a Utah processor. None of them covers the link defense planners now treat as the binding one, the alloying and refining that turns raw scandium into aircraft-grade aluminum-scandium alloy and germanium concentrate into infrared-grade optics. That step still happens almost entirely in China.

The deals surfaced as Lockheed works to line up domestic sources of two strategic metals it uses across the F-35 Lightning II, Patriot interceptor missiles, and a range of infrared sensors. Under a preliminary agreement with NioCorp Developments, Lockheed would take 15 metric tons of scandium a year from a Nebraska mine that is not expected to produce until 2028. NioCorp has said the broader project, which targets niobium, scandium, and titanium, would yield roughly 100 metric tons of scandium annually once running. The agreement is a memorandum of understanding, not a finalized supply contract.

Scandium is the additive that lets aluminum alloys stay light and hold their strength at the temperatures seen in aircraft welds and rocket components. NioCorp CEO Mark Smith framed the arrangement as part of a longer push: "Both companies recognize how important scandium has become to the future of American defense technology," he said. Lockheed, in a statement, said it appreciated "the work NioCorp is doing to establish a domestic source of scandium." The two companies already collaborate through a Pentagon-funded research program on scandium aluminum alloys.

For germanium, the links sit further up the chain. Teck Resources produces a germanium-rich concentrate as a byproduct of zinc mining at its Red Dog mine in Alaska, the only large operating U.S. source of primary germanium. Lockheed is in talks with Teck for long-term germanium supply, according to people familiar with the discussions. The talks are not finalized. Germanium is the substrate for the infrared optics used in missile seekers, thermal scopes, and space-based sensors; it also shows up in high-speed electronics and some optical fiber.

The third partner fills a different gap. 5N Plus, a Quebec-based specialty metals and chemicals producer, received Pentagon funding earlier this year to build out germanium recycling and processing capacity in Utah. Recycled feed, sourced from scrapped optics and manufacturing waste, is one of the few near-term ways to add germanium supply outside China. The Lockheed-5N Plus discussions are also at the talks stage, not a signed contract.

The Trump administration last month issued an executive order restricting the defense contractor waivers that had allowed purchases of strategic minerals from China and other restricted foreign suppliers. One of the people familiar with the discussions put the goal in plain terms: "What Lockheed basically wants is a long-term supply chain security. Because they are under pressure, they really want to know if the supply is coming from China or elsewhere."

The three partnerships map onto a chain of custody. NioCorp owns the ore. Teck owns the concentrate. 5N Plus owns the recycled feed. The missing link is the metallurgy in between, where scandium oxide is alloyed with aluminum and where germanium is refined to the purity that infrared optics require. That capacity is concentrated in China, and a domestic substitute at the scale Lockheed needs is not yet visible in the three announced arrangements.

North American processing capacity remains thin, and Chinese suppliers have traditionally priced lower than Western rivals. The NioCorp mine is more than two years from first production, and the Teck and 5N Plus deals are still being negotiated. The next decisions to watch are the final terms of the NioCorp scandium agreement, the closure of either the Teck or 5N Plus germanium talks, and whether the alloying and refining link shows up in a fourth, less photogenic announcement.