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 Enabling profitable, secure and responsible 
 Australian critical minerals  supply chains   

Industries Reliant on Critical Minerals

Agriculture

Energy

Defence

Communications

Medical

Manufacturing

Space

Technology

Transport

Science & Innovation

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 CMA Australia follows the CMIA's 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.

Technology Metals

Metals that are necessary to make new technology work. These have limited supply chain vulnerabilities.

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