Queensland has many of the world’s critical minerals (such as copper, cobalt and vanadium) essential for the technologies needed to transition energy systems and decarbonise local, national and global economies. Queensland’s critical minerals will be needed to build the wind and solar farms and batteries to deliver on Queensland’s target of 80% renewable energy by 2035.

The Queensland Critical Minerals Strategy (QCMS) outlines the state’s ambition to transform the state, national and global economy through the responsible use of Queensland’s critical minerals, creating sustainable economic prosperity for Queensland.

The QCMS has four key objectives:

• Move faster, smarter.
• Maximise investment.
• Build value chains.
• Foster research and environmental, social and governance (ESG) excellence.

Targets

• Work with community, First Nations peoples and industry to commence a coordinated place-based approach where projects are co-located in one regional area. Each zone will be unique, and government actions will be tailored according to geography, stakeholder priority and concerns, and the minerals targeted.
• Explore remaining mineralisation in mine waste for critical minerals by providing funding to assist companies in undertaking drilling within tailings and waste-rock dumps and other activities on abandoned and operating mine sites.
• Review the regulatory framework to facilitate reprocessing opportunities in mine tailings and waste rock that hold substantial mineral deposits and value, including critical minerals.
• Profile and promote Queensland’s critical minerals by developing an investor-focused portal and working with the Australian Government.
• Work with Treasury to deliver the Critical Minerals and Battery Technology Fund to support businesses across the whole critical minerals supply chain, with a focus on enhancing the extraction and processing of critical minerals and accelerating the development of battery technologies and production of precursor or advanced materials in Queensland.
• Deliver $8 million to research and development in circular economy and mining.

Outcomes

• Rent reduction for exploration – the Queensland Government has reduced the rent for new and existing exploration permits for minerals to $0 for five years from 1 September 2023.