An artist's impression of the new military Maintenance Support Facility that the New Zealand government is developing at the Burnham Military Camp. (NZDF)

The New Zealand government has started development of a new facility to maintain and sustain military equipment. The proposed Maintenance Support Facility (MSF) is being constructed at the Burnham Military Camp near Christchurch on the South Island.

Marking the start of the MSF construction project, Defence Minister Andrew Little said, “This new state-of-art facility replaces Second World War-era buildings and will enable our defence force to better maintain and repair equipment.”

A spokesperson for the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) told Janes that the MSF will be operational by early 2026. “The facility will take approximately two years to complete and will be finished in the fourth quarter of 2025, with commissioning and interim operating release currently planned for the first quarter of 2026,” the spokesperson said.

The NZDF spokesperson said the MSF will be mainly focused on supporting New Zealand (NZ) Army equipment. “The New Zealand Army's equipment has become physically larger, with more technological components,” the spokesperson said.

MP Materials is building a rare earths separation facility in Mountain Pass, California. (MP Materials)

The US Department of Defense (DoD) is pushing for increased domestic production of lithium and nickel, agreeing to funnel a total of USD110.6 million to support the reopening of US-based mining operations for the critical materials.

The USD90 million lithium production initiative is being spearheaded by the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Industrial Base Policy, and funding for the effort was pulled from the Biden administration's Inflation Reduction Act, which was approved by the US Congress in 2022.

As part of the deal, DoD's Manufacturing Capability Expansion and Investment Prioritization (MCEIP) office will provide the finds to North Carolina-based Albemarle Corporation “to support the expansion of domestic mining and production of lithium”, according to an initial 12 September Pentagon statement.

The total value of notified Foreign Military Sales to Taiwan over the past five years is about USD20 billion. (US Defense Security Cooperation Agency/Janes)

The Biden administration has approved the United States' first Foreign Military Financing (FMF) package for Taiwan, a State Department official has told Janes.

The official said the FMF transfer is worth USD80 million, adding that Congress was notified of the administration's intent to supply the assistance on 29 August.

The State Department official did not disclose what military equipment will be procured through the FMF funding. The official said the funds would support Taiwan military acquisitions channelled through the US government's Foreign Military Sales (FMS) mechanism.

“The United States has provided FMS to Taiwan for decades,” the State Department official told Janes.

“FMF simply enables eligible partners to purchase US defence articles, services, and training through either FMS or, for a limited number of partners, through the foreign military financing of direct commercial contracts programme.”

The official added that the decision does not reflect any change in the US government's ‘One China' policy towards China. “We do not support Taiwan independence,” the official said.