Supply Chain Transparency

Understanding How the Future Energy System Will Impact the Global Supply Chain and Associated Effects on Markets, Communities and the Environment

The global supply chain continues to grow at an incredible rate, but within that growth, a lack of transparency undermines many industries and consumers as they struggle to understand the effects of the supply chain on the markets, communities and the environment.

Payne Supply Chain Transparency works with the Critical Materials Institute, the U.S. government, and policy other stakeholders to better understand the challenges and opportunities related to growing critical mineral demand.

Low-carbon scenarios often have—implicitly or explicitly—high and diverse material needs, depending on what assumptions are made about the nature of future energy systems. As certain technologies become more prominent, it becomes easier to identify what materials will be needed in the near term.

It is important to acknowledge the inherent tensions that exist between building a sustainable future and not managing or understanding the sources and materials with which it is built.

For more information about the Supply Chain Transparency Initiative at the Payne Institute for Public Policy, please contact our Deputy Director, Gregory Clough, at gclough@mines.edu.

NEWS

Iran war will have a medium-term impact 4/14/26

Iran war will have a medium-term impact

The Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian joined CNBC to discuss a reality many are overlooking: the Iran war’s impact on Helium and Sulfur. Morgan points out, these aren’t just “commodities”—they are the linchpins for semiconductors and healthcare. April 14, 2026.

A Closed Strait of Hormuz Risks a Global Food Security Crisis

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian, Gabriel Collins and Senior Research Associate Jahara Matisek write about the war in Iran and how it has done more than rattle energy markets. It has exposed an ordinary farm input as a strategic commodity. Urea is a concentrated, easy-to-transport nitrogen fertilizer that increases the yields of many crops, especially staple grains like corn, rice, and wheat. April 13, 2026.

Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining developing in Chile: Impact and Structural Barriers to Formalization 4/10/2026

Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining developing in Chile: Impact and Structural Barriers to Formalization

Payne Institute Research Associate Isabel Guajardo, Critical Minerals Program Manager Clarkson Kamurai, Energy Finance Lab Program Director Brad Handler and Faculty Fellow Ian Lange write about how artisanal and Small-Scale Mining (ASM) plays a meaningful, though often understated, role in Chile’s mining sector and regional economies. April 10, 2026.

The Foundational Metal of War: Aluminum, the Middle East War, and America’s Strategic Vulnerability 4/10/2026

The Foundational Metal of War: Aluminum, the Middle East War, and America’s Strategic Vulnerability

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian, Macdonald Amoah, and Senior Research Associate Jahara Matisek contribute to this article about how the US military has an aluminum problem. It arises not from the metal’s rarity, but its presence everywhere; and yet aluminum is largely overlooked as a critical defense mineral, even though militaries are utterly dependent on a steady supply of it. April 10, 2026.

The Hidden Supply Chain Risk in AI:US Reliance on China’s Yttrium 4/9/26

The Hidden Supply Chain Risk in AI: US Reliance on China’s Yttrium

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian and Senior Research Associate Jahara Matisek and Macdonald Amoah write about the biggest consequence of the artificial intelligence (AI) buildout. Aside from the water, electrical, and mineral demands, it is the scramble for gas turbines. Data centers, especially hyperscale AI centers, need power at an immense scale that many local grids cannot deliver, forcing developers to build their own large-scale natural gas generation in a race for compute. April 9, 2026.

Tracking and Transacting Clean Natural Gas: Operationalizing Environmental Attribute Tokens 4/7/2026

Tracking and Transacting Clean Natural Gas: Operationalizing Environmental Attribute Tokens

Payne Institute Student Researcher Liam O’Byrne and Energy Finance Lab Program Director Brad Handler write about how there is an emerging need for companies to track and disclose the carbon intensity of the natural gas and other fossil fuel-based products they buy. For producers of these fuels, documenting carbon intensity, at least at scale, requires systems that standardize, which the financial services industry can leverage to create new markets. April 7, 2026.

Artemis II reignites deep-space travel. Will it also boost a lunar economy? 4/7/2026

Artemis II reignites deep-space travel. Will it also boost a lunar economy?

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Angel Abbud-Madrid contributed to this article about how NASA and its partners in the commercial U.S. space industry are counting on the Artemis mission to break records and garner enough popular support to help usher in a new era of space exploration, one that is fueled by a thriving space economy. April 7, 2026.

In Indian Country, Data Centers Come With a Familiar Threat of Colonialism. These Organizers Are Fighting Back. 4/7/2026

In Indian Country, Data Centers Come With a Familiar Threat of Colonialism. These Organizers Are Fighting Back.

The Payne Institute Native American Mining and Energy Sovereignty (NAMES) previously published commentary was cited in this paper about how when a data center proposal popped up on the Muscogee Reservation, these activists fought to stop it. Their work isn’t over yet. April 7, 2027.

Energy systems research strengthens the power grid to withstand disruptions 4/7/2026

Energy systems research strengthens the power grid to withstand disruptions

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Paulo Cesar Tabares Velasco is featured in this article about how when power grids fail during sub-zero cold snaps or high winds threaten to topple power lines and spark wildfires, the vulnerabilities in the Unites States’ energy infrastructure become apparent. The gap between what our infrastructure was built to handle and what it must endure continues to widen. April 7, 2026.

Mines Energy Research Magazine 4/6/2026

Mines Energy Research Magazine

The Payne Institute is featured in the Energy Issue of the Mines Research Magazine which highlights how Mines stands at the center of the energy conversation. We integrate education, research and industry partnerships to spur innovation and prepare adaptable, forward-thinking talent to lead what’s next in the domestic and international energy workforce. April 6, 2026.

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