Inside Washington’s rare bet on Korea Zinc

The US government’s decision to back Korea Zinc’s planned $7.4 billion smelter in Tennessee came as a surprise, given how rarely Washington directly invests in foreign companies, especially in a sector linked to national security and strategic minerals. Under the plan, the US Department of Defense and undisclosed US investors will jointly invest $2.15 billion in a new joint venture, Crucible JV. The Pentagon is poised to hold a 40 percent stake in the JV alongside Korea Zinc to operate the criti