Kenya to Award Mrima Hill Critical Minerals Tender Within Weeks as Fluor Corp Leads US Bids After Chinese Exit

Kenya will name a developer for its Mrima Hill critical minerals deposit within two to three weeks, mining minister Hassan Ali Joho said, after two Chinese firms withdrew from the process. Fluor Corp is bidding as part of Meridian Mineral Holdings, one of five contenders that submitted tenders on October 21. The shortlist includes two US consortia, a US-affiliated group led by Critical Metals Corp, an Australian tie-up between RareX and Iluka Resources, and a Kenyan-British joint venture, Gem of Dreams. Hunan Research Institute for Nonferrous Metals and Jinan Yuxiao Group Co. Ltd. pulled out; Joho said he did not know why. Preliminary indicators suggest the deposit, about 65 kilometers from Mombasa, holds tens of billions of dollars' worth of rare earths and niobium. The tender underscores Washington's push to secure critical minerals and reduce dependence on China, which dominates global supply chains and has tightened export controls.