Overview
- Canberra and Washington each committed at least US$1 billion in near‑term support, with the package reported as unlocking an US$8.5 billion project pipeline and described by some outlets as a US$13 billion deal.
- Priority projects include Alcoa–Sojitz’s planned gallium plant in Western Australia with up to US$200 million from Australia, and Arafura’s Nolans rare‑earths project with conditional Australian equity of up to US$100 million and potential US support of up to US$300 million.
- The US Export–Import Bank issued Letters of Interest exceeding US$2.2 billion to multiple Australian firms, including Arafura Rare Earths, Northern Minerals, Graphinex, Latrobe Magnesium, VHMRZ Resources and Sunrise Energy Metals.
- Shares of targeted miners jumped at the open then finished mixed, as analysts welcomed the framework but warned detailed project timelines and heavy subsidies will be needed to build processing capacity.
- Local scrutiny is mounting in Western Australia, where Alcoa faces a record 59,000 EPA submissions on broader operations, and China’s public response has been muted as experts note processing know‑how remains the key bottleneck.