Quad nations unveil $20B critical minerals plan

The Quad partner nations — United States, Japan, Australia and India — have released plans to invest $20 billion to further support the buildout of a reliable critical minerals supply chain in an effort to counter China’s dominance.

The Quad Critical Minerals Initiative announced on Tuesday sets out the framework for the countries to work together through economic policy tools and coordinated investment to accelerate the development of a secure supply chain of minerals powering advanced technology, defence systems, batteries and AI.

To support this initiative, the Quad partners intend to mobilize $20 billion in government and private-sector funding of the entire critical minerals supply chain, which includes mining, processing and recycling, the U.S. Department of State said in a statement.

This would entail identifying projects with a so-called Quad nexus, the Department said. They must be located in partner countries, operated by companies headquartered in Quad partner countries, or supplying Quad markets. 

Financing

The funding would involve various mechanism such as export credit agencies, development finance institutions, mobilization of private capital, or other public supporting tools, including guarantees, loans, equity participation, insurance, subsidies and offtake agreements.

Under the initiative, the Quad nations would share information on good practices and technical approaches to permitting, licensing and regulatory processes, cooperate on technology development and capacity building related to geological mapping and resource assessment, and consider coordinated measures to address non-market policies and unfair trade practices.

On the recycling front, the partners will also work together to improve the recovery and use of critical minerals from e-waste and other scrap materials.

The announcement came on the back of a meeting in New Delhi between the nations’ foreign ministers. In addition to the critical minerals initiative, the Quad partners also entered an Indo-Pacific energy security pact aimed at strengthening regional fuel and energy supply chains. Earlier that day, U.S. and India also signed a framework agreement on critical minerals.