Organisations around the world are turning to Australia for critical minerals and rare earth elements, attracted by the nation’s rich geological endowment, mining expertise and reputation as a reliable and responsible resources exporter.
Australia welcomes this interest: building a critical minerals industry that can contribute to global supply chains is a strategic priority under the Australian Government’s Future Made in Australia agenda. Foreign investment and partnerships will be essential to achieving this goal.
The Australian Government has bilateral and multilateral partnerships with the United States, Japan, the Republic of Korea, the European Union, France, Germany, the United Kingdom and India to cooperate on critical minerals. The partnerships will help accelerate key projects, secure long-term commercial partnerships between signatories, and build diverse, resilient global supply chains.
Australia’s multilateral engagements
Australia is an active member of multilateral forums and initiatives.
As a member of the G7 Critical Minerals Resilience and Production Alliance, Australia works closely with G7 members to coordinate supply chain diversification efforts and mobilise investment.
Australia remains an active member of the IEA Critical Minerals Working Party (CMWP), contributing to the IEA’s work on critical minerals security, and chaired the Strategic Advisory Group in the International Organization for Standardization to develop technical standards for critical minerals and materials.
Australia also supports the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework and the OECD’s work on responsible critical mineral supply chains and due diligence.
Under the Quad Critical Minerals Initiative Framework, Quad partners (Australia, the United States, Japan and India) committed to mobilising up to A$20 billion in government and private sector support to strengthen supply chains; and explore other ways to support the development of critical minerals projects.
Bilateral partnerships
Australia’s bilateral partnerships have facilitated investment in several Australian critical minerals projects.
The United States
The United States is a key player in the global critical minerals supply chain and one of Australia’s most important partners.
In October 2025, Australia and the United States signed the United States–Australia Framework for Securing of Supply in the Mining and Processing of Critical Minerals and Rare Earths. Under the framework, Australia and the US will accelerate an US$8.5 billion pipeline of priority critical minerals projects delivered by and for the 2 nations. Australia and the United States will each provide at least US$1 billion in investments towards priority projects.
In March 2026, the 2 nations announced they would provide funding support for 11 projects in Australia. The US, through the Export-Import Bank, will provide A$2.2 billion. Australia, through Export Finance Australia, will contribute A$1.4 billion.
Read more about the Australia-US critical minerals partnership one year on.
Japan
Australia and Japan formalised a Critical Minerals Partnership in October 2022 to secure and diversify supply chains for minerals essential to clean energy and advanced manufacturing. The Partnership focused on linking Australian resource projects to Japanese industrial demand.
In May 2026, Australia and Japan elevated their critical minerals cooperation to be a core pillar of their economic security relationship. The partnership aims to strengthen long-term commercial links between Australian producers and Japanese end users.
The Australian Government – through the Critical Minerals Facility and Export Finance Australia – is providing support of up to A$1.3 billion to critical mineral projects with Japanese involvement. The 2 governments have identified 6 key projects that have the potential to materially diversify the supply chains for critical minerals.
Find out more about 2 of these projects:
The Australian-first Speewah Fluorite Project aims to produce acid-grade fluorite, a key raw material for hydrofluoric acid used in semiconductors and electric vehicles. Image courtesy of Tivan Limited.
Korea
Korea’s massive battery, automotive, electronics and manufacturing industries are driving demand for critical minerals and rare earths. Australia and Korea signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Cooperation in Critical Mineral Supply Chains in 2021 to expand their collaboration across mining, processing, refining, battery materials, and clean energy technologies.
Export Finance Australia and the Export-Import Bank of Korea have also signed an MoU to strengthen cooperation and co-financing in key sectors including critical minerals.
Major Korean companies including POSCO Holdings are investing Australia’s lithium and battery materials sectors.
Find out more about POSCO’s lithium partnership with Australia’s Mineral Resources.
The European Union
In May 2024, Australia and the EU signed an MoU for a bilateral partnership to cooperate on sustainable critical and strategic minerals.
The partnership aims to enable the EU to diversify its supplies of materials necessary for the green and digital transitions, while contributing to the development of Australia’s domestic critical minerals sector. The partnership covers the entire critical and strategic minerals value chain: exploration, extraction, processing, refining, recycling, and processing of extractive waste.
In November 2025, Australia and the European Investment Bank (EIB) signed a declaration of intent to strengthen cooperation on critical minerals investment. This marks the first step towards enabling EIB to provide financial support to critical minerals projects in Australia.
France
In 2023, Australia and France signed a bilateral agreement to cooperate on critical minerals supply chains. Under the agreement, Australia and France are working together on a joint study looking at supporting secure bilateral critical minerals supply chains and identifying specific opportunities for battery minerals and rare earth magnets.
Germany
In 2023, Australia and Germany signed a joint Declaration of Intent to work together to develop critical minerals value chains. The joint study will create new opportunities for critical minerals projects that support Australia and Germany to reach net zero commitments.
Under the mandate of the German Raw Materials Fund (GRMF), Germany’s state-owned development bank Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW) is investing in Australian critical minerals projects, including Arafura’s Nolans Rare Earths project in the Northern Territory.
The United Kingdom
In April 2023, Australia and the UK issued a Joint Statement of Intent to build diverse, resilient and sustainable supply chains. This includes identifying investment opportunities in key critical minerals supply chains; supporting both nations to build sovereign capabilities in downstream processing and manufacturing; and enhancing R&D collaboration.
India
Australia and India forged a Critical Minerals Investment Partnership in 2022. A year later, the 2 countries announced they had identified 5 target projects (2 lithium and 3 cobalt) on which to undertake detailed due diligence. The projects will support India’s plans to lower emissions from its electricity network and become a global manufacturing hub, including for electric vehicles.
Resources for critical minerals investors
- Latest Australian Critical Minerals Prospectus
- Why Australia is made for critical minerals investment
- An investor’s guide to state and territory critical minerals programs
- Financing pathways for investors in Australia’s critical minerals supply chain
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