Australian governments, industry bodies and companies have backed a plan to co-invest in critical minerals processing and refining as part of a bid to break China's market dominance of the sector.
US president Donald Trump and Australia's Labor prime minister Anthony Albanese signed an agreement in Washington to co-invest at least $1bn each in priority critical minerals projects in both nations in the next six months.
The governments pledged to support an $8.5bn pipeline of priority critical minerals projects, Albanese said on 20 October.
The US and Australia's critical mineral deal will boost co-operation via a US-Australia Critical Minerals Supply Security Response Group that will support priority minerals and address supply vulnerabilities. Both countries have also agreed to accelerate permitting processes and work on developing pricing frameworks including floors, they said.
The initial projects backed by Canberra include $200mn in financing for a 100 t/yr capacity gallium plant in Western Australia (WA) and a fresh $100mn equity investment in Australian miner Arafura Rare Earths' Nolans rare earths project, which has already received more than A$1bn ($650mn) in state support.
The US' Export-Import Bank (US EXIM) — a government-owned financier — also indicated it would consider providing up to $2.2bn of co-funding to seven Australian developers including Northern Minerals, Graphinex, La Trobe Magnesium, and VHM (see table). It has issued non-binding letters of intent to the companies.
Australia's deal with the US will help to derisk funding for capital-intensive projects, Arafura financial officer David Sherrington said at the International Mining and Resources Conference (IMARC) in Sydney on 21 October. It shows how governments are taking issues around resilient value chains seriously and could help both Arafura and the wider Australian mineral sector, he added.
The deal's pricing and permitting commitments could also support critical mineral sectors beyond direct funding.
Price opacity and volatility within critical mineral markets discourage investment into Australian critical mineral projects, Paul Holden, Critical Minerals Queensland lead, said at the IMARC conference on 21 October.
The countries' commitment to fast-track approvals acknowledges Australia's strategically important role in supplying future sectors, industry group the Minerals Council of Australia said.
This also comes a little over two months after the WA government announced a draft of permitting reforms to speed up some development. The state's co-ordinator general — an official dedicated to supporting priority projects — will be able to work across agencies to support projects under the reforms.
| US Export-Import Bank Funding | ||
| Developer | Project (mineral) | US Export-Import Bank – maximum funding ($) |
| Graphinex | Esmerelda (graphene) | 860mn |
| RZ Resources | Copi (mineral sands) | 450mn |
| Arafura Rare Earths | Nolans (rare earth) | 300mn |
| Northern Minerals | Browns Range (rare earth) | 200mn |
| VHM | Goschen (rare earth) | 200mn |
| La Trobe Magnesium | La Trobe Magnesium stage 2 | 122mn |
| Sunrise Energy Metals | Syerston Scandium Project | 67mn |
| — ASX releasees | ||
