Australia releases 'disappointing' Critical Minerals Strategy

The new strategy has six focus areas: developing strategically important projects, with targeted support; attracting investment and building international partnerships, to optimise trade and investment settings for priority technologies; First Nations engagement and benefit sharing; promoting Australia as a world leader in environmental and social governance (ESG) standards; unlocking investment in enabling infrastructure and services; and growing a skilled workforce.As one of the first policy decisions under the strategy, the government will target A$500 million of new investment into critical minerals projects, via the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility.The strategy will also establish a process to update the critical minerals list."The new Critical Minerals Strategy outlines the enormous opportunity to develop the sector and new downstream industries which will support Australia's economy and global efforts to lower emissions for decades to come," King said."While the potential is great, so too are the challenges. The Strategy makes it clear our natural minerals endowment provides a foot in the door, but we must do more to create Australian jobs and capitalise on this unique opportunity."Independent modelling has found increasing exports of critical minerals and energy transition minerals could create more than 115,000 new jobs and add $71.2 billion to gross domestic product by 2040.If Australia builds downstream and refining capacity, the number of jobs could increase by 262,600, and add to $133.5 billion to GDP strengthen by 2040.International competition for investment in critical minerals is already intense, with incentives announced by the US and European Union designed to boost investment to diversify supply chains and to decarbonise their economies.The Australian government is also working with industry and international partners to help Australian projects link to emerging markets in the US, UK, Japan, Korea, India, the EU and its member states.Industry respondsAmong the mining sector's main wishes for the strategy was streamlined approvals, tax incentives and support to make downstream processing in Australia more competitive."It's disappointing the government hasn't backed up its rhetoric with meaningful investment to make battery chemical processing cost competitive in Australia," Mineral Resources managing director Chris Ellison said."This missed opportunity will keep Australia handicapped in the global race to capture more value from our battery minerals."Real action like tax incentives, fast-tracked approvals and financial assistance are urgently required if the government is serious about competing in a post-Inflation Reduction Act world."Iluka Resources, which has already received a $1.25 billion non-recourse loan for its Eneabba rare earths refinery from the government, welcomed the release of the strategy and the identification of the production of rare earth magnets as an initial priority technology."Australia has a once-in-a-generation opportunity to usher in a new era of sovereign capability, value addition, high-skilled jobs and economic growth," CEO Tom O'Leary said."We welcome the government's efforts to better align policy to support the longevity of Australia's rare earth resources, and the acknowledgment that coordination will be particularly important as we seek to move further downstream and build truly sustainable supply chains."Minerals Council of Australia CEO Tania Constable welcomed the release of the "high-level, well-considered" framework."While the government's strategy is a leap forward, providing a coherent framework for integrating already well-developed policy areas, it also highlights the significant work that remains to be done to deliver and implement an integrated Australian industry policy framework for mining processing and manufacturing," she said.Association of Mining and Exploration Companies CEO Warren Pearce said there were currently 81 projects under development in Australia and called for more efficient and effective regulatory approvals."The world needs Australia to develop its critical minerals so that we can decarbonise. As such, AMEC would like to see the government look more closely at copper and nickel, and other areas such as lithium and vanadium redox batteries, which are Australia's opportunity to establish the full battery supply chain, from pit to battery and into our grid," he said.Shadow minister for resources Senator Susan McDonald said the strategy provided no clarity or direction."The $500 million allocated from the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility is simply reallocated Coalition funding that David Littleproud and I announced in December of 2022," she said."Labor's lethargic approach to the development of this important sector means that Australia risks missing out in the worldwide competition for necessary investment in mining and value-add industries."Industry must be incredibly disappointed with this government's announcement today - yet another example of Labor's all-talk and no-action approach."

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