Australia announces four strategic mineral investments to compete for market share of rare earths, energy storage and lithium batteries

On Wednesday morning local time, the Australian government announced a number of mining investment plans, outspoken about its ambition to compete for market share in industries such as rare earth magnets, lithium batteries and energy storage.

(source: Australian Government)

As the world's largest producer of lithium, the second largest producer of cobalt and the fourth largest producer of rare earths, the Australian government has previously proposed a "modern manufacturing initiative" worth A $1.3 billion. The four projects announced today are also under this initiative, with the Government allocating a total of A $243 million.

1. Pure battery technology will receive a grant of A $119 million, and the company will work with Poseidon Nickel to build a nickel-manganese-cobalt battery material refining hub.

2. Australian Vanadium Company has received a grant of A $49 million, which is mainly used for mining high-grade vanadium ore, which is also an important raw material for energy storage batteries.

3. The rare earth separation plant built by Arafura Resources in central Australia will receive an investment of A $30 million, which is the first in Australia and the second in the world except China (the other is in the United States).

4. Alpha HPA's high purity alumina production equipment received a grant of A $45 million to meet the expansion demand for lithium battery materials and LED lamps.

Encouraged by government money, Arafura resources rose 15.38 per cent and Australian vanadium rose 40 per cent on Wednesday.

Australian Prime Minister Morrison, who is about to face a federal election and is on a par with his competitors in opinion polls, told the media on Wednesday that a series of recent events show that Australia is facing a dangerous environment not seen in nearly 80 years. what is happening in Europe is also a reminder of the close relationship between energy security, economic security and national security.

The Australian government also announced on Wednesday that a series of policies to support key mineral sectors were also included in the 2022 Accelerator Grant Program, A $50 million was used to support research and development, and industrial policies were updated.

Australian Minister of Resources, Water and North Australia, Cespeter, said in a statement that the Accelerator project will provide grants to strategically important mineral projects in the early and medium term to help them start production at an early date. The newly released key Minerals Strategy aims to develop our key mineral sectors, expand downstream processing and meet future global demand.