A review of the US Defense National Stockpile Center carried out by the National Research Council has recommended a new approach to the management of the nation’s defence material needs.
The DNSC currently holds stocks of a range of materials, including tin, but has been steadily selling off its holdings for many years. Tin stocks were last reported at 8,490 tonnes as at 13 September, having once exceeded 300,000 tonnes at the height of the Cold War in the 1960s.
According to American Metal Market the NRC report recommends that stockpiling could still be used within the new system, but other techniques – such as planning ahead and building supply chains for essential materials – would work better in the event of a supply shortfall or sudden surge in demand. The DNSC declined to comment on the report on Friday, saying only that it has appointed a team of senior officials to review it. That group is expected to produce a set of recommendations for the Defense Department, which will make the final decision on how to proceed, a DNSC spokesman said.
Meanwhile there are indications that disposals of tin and other materials are being delayed. Although small scale sales of 39 tonnes of tin were made last month, an expected September tender for long-term sales of the bulk of the remaining stockpile tin has not yet taken place or been scheduled.
