The Western Australian government has released the state’s updated Battery and Critical Minerals Strategy, outlining key activities to support the further development of the state’s growing battery and critical minerals industries through 2030.
The refreshed strategy was developed in consultation with key stakeholders and is backed by a new $500 million Strategic Industries Fund investment.
It aims to position WA as a major global player in the downstream processing of critical minerals, contributing to global decarbonisation efforts while diversifying the state’s economy.
Since the previous strategy refresh in 2020, WA’s value-adding battery and critical minerals industries have experienced substantial growth.
Production of critical minerals has increased, with sales of copper, cobalt, nickel, and lithium rising from $6.1 billion to $22 billion in 2023.
The updated strategy reflects changes in the international investment environment, including significant global policy shifts in the critical minerals and renewables industries.
The state government’s current near-term priority actions include:
- Creating a more efficient approvals system
- Planning and investing in common-user infrastructure
- Targeted support for strategically important projects
The $500 million Strategic Industries Fund will be used to prepare land for future industrial projects, ensuring WA is primed for sustainable growth and development.
This investment will deliver common-user and other enabling infrastructure at Strategic Industrial Areas (SIAs) across regional and metropolitan WA.
Additionally, the state government invested $36.4 million in the 2024-25 State Budget to speed up approvals for job-creating projects by boosting resourcing of WA’s approvals framework.
New data from the Department of Energy, Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety shows that 2023 was another stellar year for the state’s resources sector, with record employment levels and near-record sales on production of $248 billion.
Premier Roger Cook highlighted the importance of critical minerals in WA’s economic diversification story, stating: “Critical minerals are the centrepiece of WA’s economic diversification story, and we are working to position our state as a major global leader in downstream processing.”
Mines and Petroleum Minister David Michael also commented on the sector’s strong performance, noting record mineral exploration expenditure of $2.6 billion in 2023.
“The sector achieved another record level of employment with an average of 130,165 full-time equivalents in 2023, reflecting strong levels of mining and construction activity in the state.
“Our gold miners recorded all-time high sales of $20 billion on the back of soaring prices for the precious metal and iron ore put in another solid performance with sales of $139 billion on the back of production of 860 million tonnes, the second highest level for a single calendar year or financial year,” said Michael.
The refreshed Battery and Critical Minerals Strategy positions Western Australia to capitalise on the growing global demand for critical minerals and contribute to the transition towards a more sustainable future.
