DTEC Mineral & Metal Technology – U.S.–Malaysia MOU Briefing

Date Signed: October 26, 2025 | Signatories: President Donald J. Trump & Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim

Purpose: Strengthen cooperation and investment between the United States and Malaysia in exploration, extraction, processing, refining, manufacturing, and recycling of critical minerals and rare earths.

Key Provisions

Clause / Theme	Description	Strategic Implication for DTEC MMT
Investment Priority	U.S. investment to be prioritized in critical-minerals assets located in or owned by Malaysian-registered companies.	Confirms U.S. funding eligibility (EXIM, DFC, DoD) for DTEC MMT’s projects.
Technical Cooperation	Joint workshops, geoscience collaboration, technology transfer, and capacity building.	Opens the door for technology transfer and potential work with the 17 US National Labs, Universities, and National Science Foundation R&D collaborations.
Regulatory Streamlining	Commitment to improve permitting, fair investor treatment, and sustainability.	Aligns with DTEC’s license and governance-compliant status.
Market Protection & Pricing Framework	Participants will protect domestic markets and may establish price floors or similar measures.	Supports fixed/floor in offtake negotiations.
Quarterly Review Meetings	Regular meetings to review projects for U.S. investment and supply-chain expansion.	Opportunity to present DTEC MMT as a pilot project under the MOU framework and allows for offtake and technology licensing. Supports future critical process expansion in USA and Malaysia.
Non-binding but Endorsed	Signed by both heads-of-state.	Provides political validation and support for EXIM and DoD filings.

Key Talking Points

The MOU enables U.S. investment in Malaysian-based critical-mineral ventures — DTEC MMT is already structured to qualify.
The price-floor clause supports stable offtake pricing, crucial for U.S. buyers seeking joint Malaysian and US owned supply.
DTEC MMT’s ionic-clay-to-metal process aligns with MOU goals for efficient and secure rare-earth markets.
Regulatory cooperation aligns with DTEC’s mining license activation timeline.
Provides a U.S.–Malaysia government framework to support EXIM / DoD funding applications.