Rare earths, carbon goals, de-risking high on agenda

Critical minerals, and especially rare earths, as well as the ongoing need to decarbonise and a bigger role for governments are the three top areas of concern for the global mining industry.

- Clyde Russell

A photo taken on April 14 shows Lynas Rate Earths Limited's mine at Mount Weld in Western Australia. The United States has inked a critical minerals deal with Australia, opening an alternative pipeline of highly sought-after metals as China tightens its grip on production.

(AFP)

Those are the key takeaways from last week’s IMARC event in Sydney, which brought together more than 10,000 industry participants in what is one of the world’s biggest mining conferences.

Events such as IMARC are useful for companies to network and generate business deals, but they also provide platforms for participants, ranging from miners to buyers to governments and suppliers, to express their concerns and where they see the industry heading.

Three broad themes emerged from this year's event.

First, critical minerals and rare earths are the main buzz.

Part of IMARC’s huge convention floor is given over to what resembles a farmer's market, but instead of selling organic vegetables and artisan cheese, the stalls are touting mining projects.

The companies represented at the booths tend to be junior explorers seeking to raise capital from investors in order to advance their projects.