Australia’s Critical Minerals List signals our in-demand minerals to industry and international trading partners. Chiefly, these minerals are enablers for the technologies that underpin the Australian economy and way of life. Updating the Critical Minerals List is an important next step for the Critical Minerals Strategy, released in June 2023. ATSE welcomed the release of the Strategy, including its focus on developing a skilled workforce and embedding workplace inclusion, in alignment with ATSE’s submission to the Strategy. The 2023 update to the Critical Minerals List provides an opportunity to recognise elements of increasing importance for decarbonising the economy, and to align with global as well as domestic aspirations. ATSE makes the following recommendations for the update to the Critical Minerals List:
Recommendation 1: Add tin, copper and nickel to the Critical Minerals List due to their role in the energy transition.
Recommendation 2: Include recycling in assessment of Australia’s resources of critical minerals.
Recommendation 3: Assess new additions to the Critical Minerals List for their alignment with reaching the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.
Recommendation 4: Monitor potassium, zinc, uranium and thorium for future inclusion in the Critical Minerals List.