Silicon Is Not Enough: The Rush for Metals That Drive AI

Ion Jauregui – Analyst at ActivTrades

The technological race of the 21st century is no longer fought solely in laboratories or data centers. The true power of artificial intelligence, quantum computing, and advanced defense depends on critical metals and rare earths that are extracted and processed in a handful of strategic facilities around the world. Hafnium, niobium, lithium, or neodymium are now geopolitical resources as sensitive as oil was in the 1970s.

In this scenario, three companies emerge as key to the industrial autonomy of the West: MP Materials, Energy Fuels, and Albemarle Corporation.

MP Materials (MP.US): the return of U.S. industrial muscle
In the California desert, the Mountain Pass mine has become a symbol of the U.S. mining revival. Having been abandoned in the 2000s, it is now the only significant source of rare earths in the country. From there come the oxides essential for manufacturing permanent magnets, indispensable components in electric motors, guided missiles, drones, and robots. MP Materials wants to complete the value chain: not only to extract the mineral, but also to process it and transform it into finished magnets. A step that, if consolidated, would reduce the absolute dependence that the West maintains on China.

Fundamental
It has the strategic support of the U.S. government. It is making progress in vertical integration, key for industrial sovereignty. Results are pressured by the drop in global rare earth prices. It has high potential if it consolidates its refining and magnetization capacity.

Technical
The stock retreated from triple-digit highs to stabilize around $50, a zone that acts as long-term support above the 200-day moving average after losing the 50- and 100-day averages. Significant resistance appears around $77, while further corrections could take it to the $30–$40 range, where historical supports converge. Below lies the point-of-control zone, the previous price consolidation area before the May surges that led to the all-time high of $100.25. RSI is at 45.93%, near equilibrium, and MACD is in a recovery phase after a strong pullback.

Energy Fuels (Ticker AT: UUUU.US): North America’s strategic wildcard
Few companies have been able to leverage the geopolitical pivot toward nuclear energy like Energy Fuels. The company operates at the intersection of three critical industries: uranium, vanadium, and rare earths. Its White Mesa plant in Utah is one of the few complexes capable of processing high-purity strategic minerals in the West. At a time when governments in the U.S., Europe, Japan, and South Korea are seeking secure fuels for a global nuclear renaissance, Energy Fuels is in the right position.

Fundamental
It has been one of the beneficiaries of U.S. incentives for domestic uranium production. It is an emerging player in Western rare earth refining. Diversification reduces exposure to a single market. It is sensitive to uranium volatility, always a critical factor.

Technical
After a significant rise accompanying the uranium rebound, the stock has corrected sharply. The $12–$14 zones represent the technical area of greatest interest for base formation, while $10 remains immediate resistance and coincides with the point-of-control (POC) and previous consolidation area. The 100-day moving average acts as current support after the 50- and 100-day averages were lost. RSI is clearly oversold at 39.74%, and MACD confirms this bearish scenario.

Albemarle (Ticker AT: ALB.US): the giant sustaining electric mobility
Albemarle is one of the world’s major lithium powers, but limiting its importance to batteries would be a mistake. Its chemical compounds are used in catalysts, energy storage, power electronics, and defense systems. The drop in lithium prices since the 2022 highs impacted its profitability, but structural demand remains strong. With long-term supply agreements and presence in the largest deposits worldwide, Albemarle is an irreplaceable player in the global industrial chain.

Fundamental
It is the lithium leader with large-scale infrastructure. Its margins are under pressure, though stabilizing. The company has high operational leverage when lithium prices regain strength.

Technical
The stock has retraced after recently touching all-time highs at $127.07, moving to $155.88. The previous consolidation zone is around $81–$82, with a range between $90.58 and $64.95. Its moving averages remain clearly bullish, with RSI in overbought territory at 61.72% and MACD supporting the bullish theory, though reduced histogram volume could indicate slight exhaustion.

Around them orbit other relevant names like Lynas Rare Materials, Iluka Resources, TerraPower, Hyperion Metals, or Noveon Magnetics, all pointing to the same conclusion: the future of artificial intelligence is not decided in software, but in access to the materials that allow it to be built.


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