Kristina Kazakova15:15, 09.01.26

The winning consortium has close ties to the Donald Trump administration and includes Ronald S. Lauder.

On Thursday, January 8, Ukraine awarded the right to extract lithium from a large state-owned deposit to investors, including a billionaire friend of US President Donald Trump, The New York Times reports.

The publication notes that the US presidential administration has stated it is seeking investment opportunities in the war-torn country. Two members of the Ukrainian government commission, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the decision had been made, but the agreement requires formal approval by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine.

The winning consortium is reported to have close ties to the Donald Trump administration. Its members include Ronald S. Lauder, heir to a cosmetics empire.

It is noted that he has known Trump since college and allegedly was the one who pitched him the idea of ​​acquiring resource-rich Greenland. The publication also adds that another investor is TechMet, an energy company whose stake is owned by the US government’s investment agency, created during Trump’s first term.

The article states that two commission members stated that the winning consortium outperformed its competitors by meeting most of the tender criteria. They also refuted any allegations of favoritism.

At the same time, the publication believes, by establishing ties with investors associated with Mr. Trump and his administration, Kyiv is positioning itself in a favorable light with the American leader and thereby seeking his support in peace negotiations with Russia.

The article highlights that since Mr. Trump’s return to power, the alliance between the United States and Ukraine has taken on a commercial character: Washington has cut off most military aid to Kyiv and instead focused on opportunities to profit from investments and arms sales.

It is added that Ukrainian officials have adapted to the situation, and are therefore offering potentially lucrative deals in the mining and arms industries.

The publication also noted that the transactional nature of the new relationship between the US and Ukraine is evident in the draft peace plan currently being discussed between Kyiv and Washington.

It contains provisions for post-war reconstruction, which President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has estimated at $800 billion and which he says will create opportunities for American business.

“There’s a lot of money to be made there,” Trump said during a meeting with Zelenskyy last month at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.

As the publication notes, last month the Ukrainian government appointed Patrick Fragman, the former CEO of Westinghouse, a major American nuclear technology company, to the supervisory board of state-owned nuclear giant Energoatom. It adds that while at Westinghouse, Mr. Fragman expanded that company’s ties with Energoatom.

According to the article, several Ukrainian officials and businessmen believe this appointment could create a conflict of interest. At the same time, they noted that it was likely made as a signal to the Trump administration that Kyiv is willing to cooperate if it will facilitate a peace agreement.

Trump also proposed that the United States take over the management of Ukraine’s major nuclear power plant, the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, which is currently under Russian control, as part of a peace settlement.

The article states that the exact amount Mr. Lauder and TechMet have committed to invest in the development of the Dobra lithium deposit is still unknown. The tender set a minimum investment of $179 million.

However, a member of the commission who participated in the vote on Thursday, as the publication notes, stated that the consortium’s obligations were significantly higher.

The publication added that investments take years to translate into actual production and profit. First, the consortium must conduct geological surveys to determine the true value of the deposit’s subsoil. Next, it must finance the equipment and infrastructure necessary for production.

According to industry experts, the publication notes that it typically takes about 15 years from the discovery of a field to the start of production, a period that significantly exceeds Mr. Trump’s current term in office.

(C)UNIAN 2026