Australia–U.S. Critical Minerals Pact Reinforces National Need for CMCI CRC
- Carla Myburgh
- Oct 22
- 1 min read
22 October 2025
The signing of the United States–Australia Critical Minerals Framework by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and President Donald Trump underscores the strategic importance of Australia’s role in securing global supply chains for critical minerals and metals essential to clean energy, defence, and advanced manufacturing.
US. Photograph: Yuri Gripas/Shutterstock
Dr Jacqui Coombes, Chair of the Critical Metals for Critical Industries Cooperative Research Centre (CMCI CRC) bid, said the new agreement validates Australia’s need for a coordinated national initiative that can convert government policy into industrial capability.
“The CMCI CRC was designed to close the value-adding gap the Framework now brings into sharp focus,” Dr Coombes said.
“This landmark agreement confirms that Australia’s opportunity lies not only in resource endowment, but in the science, technology and skills that turn those resources into secure supply chains and advanced materials.”
The proposed CMCI CRC brings together industry, research organisations and government agencies to accelerate innovation across refining, processing, and advanced manufacturing, while strengthening sovereign capability and building a skilled workforce for the critical-minerals era.
“The Framework gives international momentum to what our partners are already committed to achieving here at home,” Dr Coombes added. “Through the CMCI CRC, Australia can ensure that this collaboration translates into tangible outcomes: new technologies, new products, and new jobs in regional communities.”
If approved, the CMCI CRC will unite partners across Australia’s critical-minerals ecosystem, aligning domestic research excellence with global demand and ensuring that Australia moves decisively from extraction to value-adding and manufacturing leadership.
Media contact:
CMCI CRC Secretariat
Read more about it here: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/oct/21/australia-us-critical-minerals-rare-earths-deal-china-explainer
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