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The global race to decarbonisation massively escalated overnight with new regulations designed to turbocharge and onshore cleantech in the EU, following the US’s game-changing Inflation Reduction Act, which is spearheading the energy revolution there. The challenge is now on for Australia to accelerate investment and leverage its competitive advantages as a value-adding energy transition materials and renewables superpower – or miss the boat. Read more

This week saw Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers make the call to back the Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB) recommendation to reject a Chinese-linked fund’s increased equity stake in an emerging Australian critical minerals developer, Northern Minerals, which is set to mine the rare earth dysprosium, used as an additive in neodymium magnets for electric vehicle motors. We look at the geopolitical implications of this move in the context of China’s global dominance on all things decarbonisation and responses by our trading partners. Read more

CEF’s new report is the first to comprehensively map Australia’s ‘once in a century’ opportunity to lead the world in value-added energy transition materials, including critical minerals, by processing, refining and manufacturing onhsore pre-export using our abundant renewable energy – a multi-hundred-billion dollar investment and export opportunity as the world rapidly decarbonises. The leading investment bank expects the “trilemma” of energy security, sustainability and affordability to remain in focus in 2023. Read more

CEF’s comprehensive summation of the critical minerals opportunity for Australia including a response to the federal consultation’s Terms of Reference and key policy recommendations. Read more

Paper # 9 in CEF’s critical minerals series: Our nation’s massive firmed RE and critical minerals comparative advantages provide a once in a century opportunity for Australia to become a global leader in decarbonised heavy industry. In the latest instalment in our series on critical minerals and new economy metals and manufacture, we review the efforts of Australian mining and refining, energy and manufacturing companies in decarbonising their operations by shifting to renewables. Read more

Our wrap of the top ten energy events in 2022, including the end of federal climate and energy policy chaos under the LNP, and our wishlist for an even better 2023! Read more

Paper #8 in our critical minerals series. The US$369bn IRA signed into law this year is the single biggest climate commitment in US history, and is triggering a monumental inflow of green capital which is transforming the US energy and economic landscape. CEF’s Tim Buckley and Matt Pollard take a close look at the deal book and policy context. Read more

We wrap the news of the week including the energy price relief plan, the energy ministers’s agreement on a capacity investment mechanism that will trigger investment into firmed renewables, and we take a look at the tsunami of green capital inflow to the US off the back of its Inflation Reduction Act (aka Climate Bill). Read more

In paper #7 of CEF’s series on value adding critical minerals, Tim Buckley and Matt Pollard look at Australian companies expanding their operations beyond Australia’s borders with key international projects. Read more

In #6 in CEF’s series on critical minerals, Matt Pollard and Tim Buckley review key Australian public financial capital initiatives and their role in accelerating Australia’s critical mineral supply chain value-adding projects, with a focus on key examples. Read more

Tim Buckley addresses Engineers Australia on the emerging critical minerals mining and refining boom in the context of the accelerating global energy transition. Read more

As Tim Buckley and Matt Pollard discuss below in paper #5 in CEF’s series on critical minerals, Australia’s allies have demonstrated the growing use of federal support in accelerating private capital inflows to scale and diversify their supply chains around critical minerals, as Australia steps up to the opportunity via its new National Critical Minerals Strategy. Read more