FILE PHOTO: A Lynas Corp worker walks past sacks of rare earth concentrate waiting to be shipped to Malaysia, at Mount Weld, northeast of Perth, Australia August 23, 2019. - Reuters
SYDNEY: Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on April 24 announced a A$1.2 billion (US$0.77 billion) plan to buy and stockpile some of the country’s vast deposits of critical minerals to try to reduce the global dependence on supplies from China, which dominates the market.
Promising to establish a strategic reserve of 31 critical minerals if he wins an election on May 3, Albanese said the plan would help to safeguard supplies at a time of growing global tensions.
