Overview
As part of the Critical Minerals Strategy 2023–30, the Australian Government has established a process to update Australia’s Critical Minerals List.
The Critical Minerals List currently includes minerals:
that are essential to modern technologies, economies and national security
whose supply chains are vulnerable to disruption
our strategic partners need
for which Australia has potential economic geological resources.
The list was last updated on 16 March 2022. Since then, global markets and other countries’ policies have evolved significantly. Updating the list will ensure that Australia’s policies reflect the current global context and can evolve over time.
We are seeking responses to an issues paper to inform the updated Critical Minerals List. The issues paper includes:
background on the list, its purpose and how it relates to Australia’s Critical Minerals Strategy
scope of the update
questions to consider in your submission.
Please provide a written submission in response to the questions in the issues paper.
When updating the list, we will also consider feedback from consultation on the Critical Minerals Strategy.
Consultation document
Updating Australia’s Critical Minerals List – issues paper [190KB PDF] [88KB DOCX]
Outcome
We updated Australia’s Critical Minerals List and introduced the new Strategic Materials List on 16 December 2023. The updates followed extensive consultation and technical and market analysis.
Submissions to the consultation focused on several main themes:
Criteria for critical minerals. Stakeholders told us this should include how important the mineral is to renewable energy and achieving net zero. Criteria should also consider a mineral’s potential for Australian industry and building on our existing expertise.
Proposed additions to the list. Stakeholders suggested adding certain minerals to the list.
Multiple categories or lists. Many stakeholders said multiple lists could help differentiate minerals based on criticality, potential for Australian industry and need for targeted support.
Reviewing the list. Many stakeholders suggested reviewing the list periodically. This would provide investment certainty while ensuring the list remains relevant. Some stakeholders also recommended reviewing the list in response to major market or other changes.
This report explains the updates and our methodology in more detail.
Read the Critical Minerals List 2023 update report [623KB PDF] [89KB DOCX]