Media

As heard in an interview on ABC Radio National, the US consideration of action against Iran and signals from Donald Trump over oil control could advantage China, which buys over 80% of Iranian crude and maintains key supply routes. Speaking at the Boao Forum, Tim Buckley highlighted the importance of energy security and long-term planning. Despite heavy coal use, China leads in renewables, batteries and EVs, exporting globally, and is positioning itself as a reliable partner shaping future energy systems. Read more

The host venue of the Boao Forum for Asia has already gone zero-carbon. Longtime observers of Asia’s green transition, Rebecca Mikula Wright and Tim Buckley, highlighted how bringing policymakers, investors and industry together can accelerate the shift. Read more

China has spent years obsessively pursuing its “self-sufficiency” drive and electrifying its economy. It has spent more than $US220 billion ($316 million) building out cleantech manufacturing, grids and energy infrastructure overseas since 2023, and another $US120 billion securing critical minerals and upstream processing, according to Climate Energy Finance. This has laid the foundations of a fully integrated global supply chain stretching from mines to electric vehicles. Read more

The US/Israel war on Iran is the latest geopolitical disruption to trigger a domestic cost-of-living crisis. Petrol and diesel prices are soaring, and the pain is spreading through mortgage rates, grocery bills, and falling super balances as markets slumps. This is no longer just a pump-price issue; it is a systemic shock to the Australian economy, repeating the fossil fuel hyperinflationary hit we all collectively suffered with Putin’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. It is time for Australia to focus and value energy independence. Read more

Climate Energy Finance’s (CEF) report, titled ‘Raw Power: China locks-in global dominance of critical minerals and metals with $120bn outbound investment surge’, confirmed that the world’s decarbonisation leader has locked in dominance over the critical minerals and metals essential for the zero-emissions economy. This is in addition to a US$220 billion invested in downstream cleantech manufacturing, such as electric vehicles (EVs) and batteries, creating a vertically integrated global green industrial strategy. Read more

Highlights – Draft AER Default Market Offer Brilliant to see the Australian Energy Regulator has today flagged draft default market offer (DMO) electricity pricing down ⬇️ 1% to ⏬ 10% for residential consumers, and between ⬇️ 8% to ⏬ 21% for small business consumers The DMO sets an efficiently priced safety-net for households and small businesses on standing offer electricity plans and acts as a reference price to help consumers compare market offers. This is the draft ruling, with the final ruling released May 2026 for effect for the 12 months starting 1 July 2026. This is consistent with Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO)’s quarterly energy dynamics highlighting Australia hit a record high 51% RenewableEnergy share in the 4QCY2025, and wholesale electricity prices fell by >40% yoy as a result. Read more

In a LinkedIn post on Monday, Climate Energy Finance founder and director Tim Buckley said it was “brilliant” to see the WA government “stepping up to enable and crowd-in private capital to regional areas, creating low cost decarbonised Australian energy to build our energy independence.” “A lot more speed and scale needed, but we are making good progress.” Read more

China has invested more than $120 billion in overseas mining and upstream processing since 2023, accelerating a state-backed push to secure the raw materials underpinning the global energy transition, says Australian think tank Climate Energy Finance (CEF). A study published last week reveals that China’s spending targeted a wide range of commodities — including lithium, copper, nickel, rare earths and bauxite — that are essential for electric vehicles, renewable power and industrial decarbonization. Read more

The think tank Climate Energy Finance (CEF) from Australia released these findings in a report last week. Researchers from this organisation documented the flow of capital from firms into mines and factories. These experts describe the approach as a coordinated effort to secure resources for decades. Tim Buckley co-authored the report and serves as the founder of CEF. He notes that the model of investment has changed to include collaboration with host governments. This shift addresses previous concerns regarding the extraction of wealth without local benefit. Read more

“Australia’s strength lies in geology, not yet in industrial depth. It is rich in the minerals that underpin the zero-emissions economy, but for too long it has relied on a familiar formula: dig, ship, and hope prices stay high,” Associate Professor Marina Yue Zhang, Australia-China Relations Institute, University of Technology Sydney, said. “That model brought prosperity, but it also bred complacency. In a world where value lies increasingly not in extraction alone but in refining, processing, manufacturing, and system integration, being a quarry is no longer enough.” Read more

China has deployed over $120 billion in outbound investment across critical minerals since 2023, building end-to-end industrial control from mining through refining, logistics, and manufacturing rather than simply securing raw materials. China dominates midstream processing with 85–90% of rare earth refining and ~90% of battery components, while resource-rich countries like Australia risk remaining upstream suppliers despite producing over 50% of global lithium. The report reinforces that control of refining and downstream processing—not raw resources—defines strategic advantage, with the window for Western allies to shift from resource wealth to industrial power rapidly narrowing. Read more

Chinese firms are increasingly partnering with host governments to build in-country processing facilities, infrastructure such as railways, ports and power systems, and local industrial capacity, in exchange for long-term supply agreements, says CEF founder Tim Buckley, who co-authored the report. This approach aligns China’s resource security goals with host countries’ ambitions to capture more value domestically and accelerate their own industrial development, he adds. Read more