The security and sustainability of critical mineral supply chains continues to be at the forefront of national policy development and international partnership ambitions. As these discussions evolve, Australian Strategic Materials (ASM) has teamed up with Mining Journal and MiningNews.Net to produce a whitepaper focused on rare earth elements markets, their challenges and their opportunities. This foundational document provides a grounding in the realities of the REE space to help inform a range of stakeholders.
The REE Revolution: Foreword by Rowena Smith
Rare earth elements (REEs) are playing a leading role in the globally shared ambition to build diverse, resilient and sustainable critical minerals supply chains. With a broad range of end uses – from clean energy technologies and semi-conductors to medical devices and defence applications – the relevance of REEs in supporting a sustainable and secure future cannot be overstated.
As demand for these materials continues to grow, the importance being placed on increasing production and enhancing processing capability is illustrated by the fact REEs appear on the official critical minerals lists of Australia, Canada, the EU, India, Japan, the Republic of Korea, the UK and the US. These strategically developed lists are driving activity within the resources sectors of the relevant jurisdictions and have been the basis for the policies and partnerships developing between those countries with the shared objective of mitigating risk within an existing supply chain dominated by a single jurisdiction.
Australia has an essential role to play in the development of this geopolitically sensitive market.
Rowena Smith, Managing Director & CEO, Australian Strategic Materials
With a significant endowment of REEs and as an established global leader in the extraction and processing of raw materials, Australia has an essential role to play in the development of this geopolitically sensitive market.
Through engagement and agreements, Australia has taken positive steps to enhance cross-jurisdictional opportunities with countries including the US, Canada, the Republic of Korea, Japan, the EU and Vietnam. These enhanced relationships are looking to develop trade, investment and partnership opportunities within the critical minerals sector but there is still more to be done if we are to fully leverage this generational opportunity.
The 2024 Australian Federal Budget placed an emphasis on Australia’s ability to ‘add value’ to its critical minerals endowment – providing incentives to do more processing activity on Australian shores. It is a commendable ambition and one that one that we should continue to strive for when specifically discussing REEs. But it will not come without its challenges. Delivering on this ambition will require investment and support in both project development and workforce capability.
At Australian Strategic Materials (ASM), we are progressing the development of our Dubbo Project in New South Wales. Here we will extract, separate and refine light and heavy REE oxides. Our refining capability has been developed in partnership with Australia’s Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO) over many years and represents sovereign technical knowhow and IP integral to the successful delivery of the project and broader growth of this sector.
I hope this publication – developed in partnership with Mining Journal – provides some insights into the compelling nature of the global REE opportunity and why Australia should be positioning itself at the forefront of the revolution.