France is emerging as a prospective investor in Australian critical minerals projects, Australia’s resources minister has said, as the country’s landmark framework agreement with the United States last October continues to galvanise interest from advanced manufacturing nations seeking to lock in supply chains independent of China.
Speaking to Reuters during the Minerals Week summit in Canberra on Thursday, Australian Resources Minister Madeleine King said that since the US deal — which anchored an $8.5 billion pipeline of investments — other partners had accelerated their engagement with urgency. “France is more and more keen,” King said, noting that Paris has engaged at a policy and financing framework level, including through export credit agency Bpifrance Assurance Export, though it has yet to announce large-scale project funding of the kind committed by the United States and Japan.
The remarks come days after Australia and the European Union signed a free trade agreement on Tuesday, which is expected to ease EU access to Australian critical minerals but stopped short of the detailed investment project commitments that accompanied the US deal. Australia has now inked sector cooperation agreements with Japan, South Korea, India, France, Germany and Britain, and this month joined the G7 Critical Minerals Production Alliance.
Australia is seeking billions of dollars in additional investment across 49 mining projects and 29 midstream processing projects, with the sector forecast to generate A$18 billion ($12.52 billion) in export earnings in the financial year beginning July 1. The government has already committed A$28 billion in financial support for the sector since coming to power in May 2022.
King cautioned that building a competitive critical minerals industry would require sustained, long-term commitment — potentially spanning decades. “If you want to compare timelines, it took China 40 years,” she said, adding that the government would need to think of its support “as a long-term proposition.” She drew a parallel with Australia’s own history of backing its iron ore and liquefied natural gas sectors, suggesting critical minerals may prove an even more complex undertaking.
Central to Australia’s near-term strategy is an A$1.2 billion strategic reserve focused on antimony, gallium and rare earths, expected to become operational in the second half of this year. The reserve will incorporate a floor price mechanism to provide market stability, while agreements will be structured to ensure the government can capture upside if prices rise — and exit that arrangement when appropriate.
King also confirmed that Australia sees its reserve as a potential feeder into the United States’ own $12 billion minerals stockpile, known as Project Vault, though she noted that the details of that arrangement remain under discussion.
On the broader challenge of attracting investment partners less experienced in mining finance, King was direct: “Many other countries just aren’t used to getting involved in mining and mining-style financing, but they’re going to have to, if they want to have that secure supply.”
