The Federal Government has handed out a further $21 million in grants to support emerging critical minerals projects.
The five grants will be distributed through the International Partners in Critical Minerals program, which provides critical minerals companies up to $20 million in funding to grow supply chains with international partners.
Vanadium was a large focus of the grants, with Vecco Group to receive $3.8 million to support the feasibility and design of a high-purity vanadium project in Queensland and Critical Minerals Group to obtain $2.7 million to build a vanadium electrolyte production chain for battery-grade chemical materials in northern Queensland.
Other recipients included Graphinex, Tivan and Australian Rare Earths.
Graphinex will be granted $3 million to fund a proposed graphite refinery in Townsville to support its Esmeralda project, Tivan’s $7.39 million will support the company’s upcoming feasibility studies for the Speewah fluorite project in Western Australia, and Australian Rare Earth’s $5 million will support a demonstration plant of ionic clay hosted rare earth elements from its Koppamurra project in South Australia.
Earlier this year, the International Partners in Critical Minerals program allocated grants to Renascor Resources, Queensland Pacific Metals and Australian Strategic Materials. Since opening in February, the program has handed out $40 million in grants.
Federal Resources Minister King every grant distributed under the program supports the Federal Government’s Critical Minerals Strategy and a ‘Future Made in Australia’ legislation, which recently passed in the Senate.
“These new grants will help Australian critical minerals and rare earth projects reach the next stage of development and secure good, highly paid and highly skilled jobs in both mining, research and downstream processing,” King said.
“Our ongoing national security and capabilities depend upon growing a strong and internationally competitive critical minerals and rare earth industry.
“Australia is determined to diversify global supply chains for these crucial materials and to create jobs in Australia in projects that support our path to net-zero and the energy and security needs of our trading partners.”
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