Enabling profitable, secure and responsible Australian critical minerals supply chains.
Industries Reliant on Critical Minerals
Agriculture
Energy
Defence
Communications
Medical
Manufacturing
Space
Science & Innovation
Technology
Transport
What are Critical Minerals?
​Critical minerals is an umbrella terminology that encompasses metals and minerals deemed essential to an industry, a nation's goals or security.
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Geoscience Australia defines a critical mineral as “a mineral or element (solid, liquid or gas) that is essential for modern technology and cannot be easily substituted with a different mineral​ AND ​there is a risk that the supply of that mineral could be disrupted”.
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Disruptions can be natural, logistical, and geopolitical.
The Critical Minerals Association networks use the following classification:
Critical Minerals
Minerals that are necessary for the industrial objectives of a country or company. Most of these have supply chain vulnerabilities.
Strategic Minerals
Minerals with diplomatic or defence importance.
Metals that are necessary to make new technology work. These have limited supply chain vulnerabilities.