<article><p class="lead">The US and Australia have agreed on a partnership to develop their critical mineral assets.</p><p>Geoscience Australia and the United States Geological Survey have formalised an earlier agreement to develop each country's critical mineral assets. Critical minerals are regarded as those that are essential for the production of products and technology in industries such as renewable energy, automotive, agriculture, telecommunications, aerospace and defence.</p><p>Australia's critical minerals policy covers metals such as rare earths, cobalt and lithium. It is the world's largest producer of lithium from hard rock, as opposed to brine, while hosting the world's largest reserves of rare earths outside of China and cobalt outside of the Democratic Republic of Congo.</p><p>The countries will work more closely on understanding each country's geological resource potential for critical minerals, including rare earth elements, and developing a pathway to supply arrangements.</p><p>"Growing global demand for critical minerals means there is huge scope for Australia to develop secure and stable supply chains to meet the growing demand for critical minerals in key economies such as the US," said Australia's resources minister Matt Canavan.</p><p>The Australia-based Association of Mining and Exploration Companies (AMEC) welcomed the partnership saying that it is an important commitment from the government towards developing Australia's critical minerals status.</p><p>"This agreement provides the necessary foundation to allow for the two geological surveys to strengthen a strong partnership to unlock greater geological knowledge that will drive growth in Australia's critical mineral industry," said AMEC chief executive Warren Pearce.</p><p>The West Australian (WA) Chamber of Minerals and Energy said the partnership could lead to new rare earths projects being developed in WA and to an increase in trade between Australia and the US. </p><p>The Australian government earlier this month announced that Australian critical minerals projects were now eligible for dual funding through Export Finance Australia and the A$5bn ($3.4bn) Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility.</p></article>
