The Trump administration announced Wednesday that it will earmark $7 billion for loans to support energy, mining, and infrastructure projects in Argentina, a move that bolsters its ally President Javier Milei and aims to secure critical minerals closer to home.
The U.S. Export-Import Bank, a federal agency, will make up to $7 billion available through 2027 for projects in Argentina, according to the State Department. The funding will help Argentine companies obtain loans to purchase American equipment and hire U.S. firms to expand railways, pipelines, ports, and power networks.
The deal is part of President Donald Trump's broader strategy to reduce U.S. dependence on China's mineral processing industry while shoring up support for Milei, who is betting on oil, gas, and mineral exports to transform Argentina's economy and ease chronic dollar shortages that have fueled repeated economic crises.
“Working together, the United States and Argentina seek to continue to build on our robust relationship through increased U.S. investment, close security cooperation and aligned values,” the State Department said in a statement.
The relationship has already yielded significant benefits for Argentina. Last year, Washington backed a $20 billion International Monetary Fund bailout and extended a separate $20 billion currency-swap line to stabilize the Argentine peso. The two countries also signed a free trade pact earlier this year.
On the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly in New York, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau and Argentine Foreign Minister Pablo Quirno said the agreement aims to connect Argentina’s lithium- and copper-rich northwest and the sprawling Vaca Muerta shale fields to the country’s ports, facilitating the shipment of minerals, oil, and gas to the U.S. and other markets.
Inadequate transport and energy infrastructure has long hampered development of Argentina’s remote deposits. The country’s history of protectionist trade policies, currency controls, and sovereign debt defaults has also discouraged foreign investment.
Milei, a fierce believer in free markets, has moved to open Argentina’s economy, scrapping import restrictions and offering tax breaks to attract investors. That has led to a surge in cheap imports, squeezing labor-intensive industries like manufacturing and retail already struggling under Milei’s spending cuts and tight monetary policy. Booming oil production and mining exports have become an economic lifeline.
Argentina holds vast deposits of lithium and copper, minerals essential for the global transition to green energy. The new U.S. financing is expected to accelerate development of these resources, potentially reshaping global supply chains.
