Critical Minerals Intelligence A project of Special Operations Association of America
20 Minerals
29 Countries
8 Critical risk
3 Very high
// Intelligence brief

Tungsten (W)

VERY HIGH RISK
Overview

A dense refractory metal with the highest melting point of any element and exceptional hardness under extreme stress conditions. Tungsten is essential to armor-piercing munitions, missile warheads, aerospace systems, industrial machining, and high-temperature defense applications.

Risk score

90/100 — supply chain threat level: Very High

Primary use cases

Armor-Piercing Ammo, Machining Tools, Missile Warheads, X-Ray Targets