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The Australian Government is accelerating its Critical Minerals Strategic Reserve (CMSR), and a target date and first minerals have been named.
Minister for Resources and Minister for Northern Australia revealed at a Monday (January 12) media conference in Rockingham that the reserve “will be in operation by the end of the year.”
“We have been moving forward over the past six months in doing the work of the task force to develop the reserve,” she said, adding that a new legislation will be introduced to expand the powers of Export Finance Australia.
The Department of Industry, Science and Resources will be overseeing strategic reserve transactions.
On the same day, Treasurer Jim Chalmers and Minister for Trade and Tourism Don Farrell detailed the AU$1.2 billion CMSR, highlighting antimony, gallium and rare earths as the first minerals of focus.
“(This) initial focus on antimony, gallium and rare earths will give added certainty to Australian projects, help attract further investment and help the sector deal with potential future market disruptions,” commented King.
All three are essential for clean-energy, manufacturing and defence sectors.
“Our government is committed to seizing the new economic opportunities the global energy transition provides, with the critical minerals needed for items like batteries, solar panels and wind turbines, found right under our feet in Australia,” Farrell said.
Rare earths are specifically becoming a focus in Australia now, with the Association of Mining and Exploration Companies proposing a Rare Earths Production Scheme under the CMSR to create a practical, fiscally responsible process to support commercial investment.
Antimony demand also rose towards the end of 2025, driven by its role in defence and energy.
Albanese and Trump also signed a rare earths deal in October 2025, under which Australia and the US agreed to each make more than US$1 billion in investments over the next six months for initial projects (including antimony mines) to address the critical minerals global demand.
“Gallium is a key ingredient for advanced semiconductors used in radar systems and telecommunications,” the government added.
CMSR will deploy AU$1 billion for new transactions, which will be drawn from the expanded AU$5 billion Critical Minerals Facility (CMF).
The CMF provides government-backed loans and equity support for projects.
In addition, AU$185 million has been earmarked for targeted mineral stockpiling and related implementation costs, reinforcing Australia’s push to secure supply chains and attract investment into the sector.
“The world needs critical minerals,” Chalmers exclaimed. “Australia has plenty of them and our critical minerals reserve will help us weather global economic uncertainty and help to boost trade and investment.”
Securities Disclosure: I, Gabrielle de la Cruz, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
