Australia Plans Critical Minerals Reserve to Reduce Reliance on China

Reserve may also be bargaining chip in negotiations with US over tariffs: Albanese

- Jonathan Pearlman

SYDNEY - Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on April 24 announced a A$1.2 billion (S$1 billion) plan to buy and stockpile some of the country's vast deposits of critical minerals to try to reduce the global dependence on supplies from China, which dominates the market.

Promising to establish a strategic reserve of 31 critical minerals if he wins an election on May 3, Mr Albanese said the plan would help to safeguard supplies at a time of growing global tensions.

"In a time of global uncertainty, Australia will be stronger and safer by developing our critical national assets to create economic opportunity, but also to build resilience," he told reporters.

He also signalled that the reserve could be a bargaining chip in negotiations with US President Donald Trump over tariffs. Australia is a close ally of the US but was unable to secure a reprieve from Mr Trump's steel and aluminium tariffs and a 10 per cent general tariff.

"What we do as friends is be prepared to engage in a constructive way, and that is what I intend to do with the United States," Mr Albanese said.

Australia has some of the world's largest deposits of critical minerals, including lithium, cobalt and rare earths, that are used to produce electric vehicle batteries, smartphones, solar panels, wind turbines, weapons and medical devices. Some of the minerals are also essential to the defence and aviation industries.