The Albanese Government has released guidelines for a new grants program to support the development of Australia’s critical minerals sector, which has the potential to play a much bigger role in global efforts to slash greenhouse gas emissions.
What’s A Critical Mineral?
Australia’s critical mineral list is based on global technology needs; particularly around electrification and renewable energy, advanced manufacturing and defence. There are 26 entries on the latest Critical Minerals Strategy list, including:
- Silicon – used in the production of cells for solar panels.
- Lithium – used in EV and solar battery storage.
- Rare-earth elements – a group of 17 metals including neodymium and dysprosium that are used in applications such as magnets for motors in electric vehicles.
The Albanese Government is in the midst of reviewing Australia’s current Critical Minerals Strategy – developed under the previous Morrison Government – to support the sector’s continued growth and better seize economic opportunities of the net-zero transformation.
Critical Mineral Demand To Skyrocket
According to the Federal Government, demand for low-emissions technologies out to 2050 is expected to increase demand for lithium 40-fold, cobalt and graphite 20-fold and rare earth elements 7-fold compared to 2020 levels.
Australia can play a leading role in the provision of critical minerals – and it already is in some cases. Approximately half of the world’s lithium comes from Australia, we’re the second-largest producer of cobalt (or third – depending on who you ask) and Australia was the fourth-largest producer of rare earth materials in 2021.
Australia does pretty well on the critical minerals front, but we can do much more – particularly around value-adding to what we dig up before shipping it overseas. For example, boosting refining capabilities to support battery grade chemicals. And there’s only a fairly narrow window to really grab the many lucrative opportunities by the proverbials.
Australia’s Critical Minerals Development Program
The Critical Minerals Development Program has been set up to provide grants to help progress early to mid-stage projects focusing on minerals on the list towards financing and production. It will provide up to $50 million in grants from $1 million to $30 million, supporting up to half of eligible expenditure on projects.
Among potentially eligible projects are those not just digging stuff out of the ground, but also integrating critical mineral processing technologies and development of downstream manufacturing capability.
Minister for Resources and Northern Australia Madeleine King said the grants are expected to support projects creating jobs and investment in regional Australia, while building on collaboration with Australia’s international partners.
“The grants program will help Australia become a trusted and stable global supplier of critical minerals and rare earths which are needed to help lower global emissions,” stated Minister King. “The road to net zero runs through Australia’s resources sector. We need Australia’s critical minerals if we are to reach net zero.”
Applications for the grants opened yesterday and will close on 20 February 2023. Further information and guidelines can be found here.
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