A company backed by President Donald Trump's sons reportedly invested in a mining group that is developing a $1.6 billion tungsten project in Kazakhstan, awarded by the Trump administration.
According to a Financial Times report, Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump have been using a shell company to buy stakes in U.S. construction group Skyline Builders Skyline Builders Group Holding (SKBL), which on Thursday merged with Cove Kaz Capital Group, the unit of New York-based mining investment group Cove Capital that was awarded the tungsten project last year.
The merged companies will create a new entity named Kaz Resources and list on Nasdaq under the ticker "KAZR" to operate the project, which comprises two deposits (Northern Katpar and Upper Kairakty) located less than 20 miles apart in the Karaganda mining district of Central Kazakhstan.
As per the FT report, which cites filings dated October 31, Skyline agreed to pay $20 million for a 20% stake in Kaz Resources, a subsidiary of Cove Capital, which also controls Cove Kaz.
There is no evidence that the Trump brothers were aware of Cove's pending $1.6 billion U.S. government contract when they made their initial investment in Skyline, nor that they played any role in the contract's award, according to the report.
The joint venture was first announced at the November C5+1 Leaders' Summit in Washington, D.C., by Trump and Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. Since 2023, the Departments of Commerce and State have supported the company's critical minerals operations in Kazakhstan through commercial diplomacy.
The White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
