A Consortium Linked to Trump’s Inner Circle Won a Tender to Develop a Lithium Deposit in Ukraine

A consortium of investors that includes a businessman close to U.S. President Donald Trump has won a tender to develop a state-owned lithium deposit in Ukraine, The New York Times reported. According to the newspaper, the decision was made by a government commission. Two of its members told the paper that an agreement has, in essence, already been reached, even though it still formally requires approval by the cabinet of ministers.

The deal concerns the Dobra deposit in the Kirovohrad region—one of the largest in the country. Lithium is a foundational element for a wide range of modern technologies, including the production of electric batteries.

As the NYT writes, the winning consortium is closely linked to the Trump administration. Among its participants is a major Republican Party donor and a longtime acquaintance of the president, Ronald Lauder, heir to the Estee Lauder cosmetics empire. He has also been described as someone who influenced Trump’s interest in the idea of Greenland’s accession to the United States.

The group of investors is also said to include the energy company TechMet, which was previously partly owned by a U.S. government investment agency established during Trump’s first presidential term.

Sources within the government commission told the NYT that the consortium outperformed its rivals by meeting most of the tender’s requirements. At the same time, the precise volume of investment planned for the development of the Dobra deposit remains unknown. The tender terms set a minimum investment threshold of $179 million, but according to one commission member, the amount declared by the consortium significantly exceeds that level.

In the spring of 2025, Kyiv and Washington signed an agreement granting U.S. companies priority access to Ukrainian mineral deposits. The document provides for the creation of a “U.S.-Ukrainian Reconstruction Investment Fund,” which is intended to give American investors first refusal on participation in the development of Ukraine’s natural resources—as well as access to revenues from their export.