Just over a year after establishing the critical minerals framework, the United States and Australia have made significant progress in strengthening their partnership, though some regions may have been overlooked.
At the International Mining and Resources Conference + Expo (IMARC) in Sydney today (27 October), a keynote panel discussion on the US Critical Minerals Strategy highlighted the Northern Territory’s underexplored mineral potential.
Hosted by Abigail Hunter, executive director of SAFE’s (Securing America’s Future Energy) Center for Critical Mineral Strategy, the panel explored how the US-Australia partnership could continue to evolve.
Panellist Joshua Kroon, the US Department of Commerce’s deputy assistant secretary for Textiles, Consumer Goods, Materials, Critical Minerals & Metals, said the framework could focus on expanding its reach into the Northern Territory over the next year.
US investment has so far been spread across almost all Australian states, but the NT’s mineral endowment remains largely untapped.
“I think we would love to see more stuff up there,” Kroon says to the audience.
“It’s challenging, right? There’s no railroad that runs from east to west. That’s been a conversation, I think, amongst, you know, the different folks.
“So, how do we unlock the NT and the stranded mineral resources that are up there? I think that would be exciting to see over the next few years as this partnership evolves more.”
Other panellists included Andrés Rodríguez, senior advisor at the US Department of Energy’s Office of Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation, and Adam Burstein, technical director of Strategic and Critical Materials at the US Department of War.
US Ambassador to Australia David Brat also spoke ahead of the panel, emphasising that the partnership relies on both financial investment and “continued investment in the shared values and virtues”.
US President Donald Trump plans to increase the defence budget from US$1 trillion ($1.42 trillion) to US$1.5 trillion next year, a move that could support critical minerals exploration and strengthen supply chain resilience.
Brat also noted that the US National Security Strategy outlines the country’s focus on “Western Hemisphere dominance”.
With investments already spanning five Australian states, the NT could be the next focus as the US-Australia partnership expands.
What lies beneath the NT
The Northern Territory is emerging as a source of critical minerals, particularly those needed for the energy transition.
These include manganese, bauxite, phosphate, gold, and uranium, as well as critical minerals such as graphite, zinc, rare earths, and lithium, according to the NT Government.
As reported by Mining.com.au yesterday (26 October), the Minerals Council of Australia (MCA) has just released a new report on the NT’s importance to Australia’s mining sector and its potential for further development.
One explorer operating in the Territory is PC Gold (ASX:PC2), which recently returned thick, stacked gold intercepts from diamond drilling at its 100%-owned Spring Hill Gold Project.
Spring Hill is a wholly owned, advanced-stage gold development project in the NT’s Pine Creek Orogen, located about two hours by road from Darwin.
The project hosts a reported ‘high-grade’, multi-zone sheeted-vein gold system extending over 8km of mineralised strike.
Meanwhile, in the critical minerals sector, Orpheus Uranium (ASX:ORP) recently reported rock-chip grades of up to 4.1% uranium oxide from an inaugural reconnaissance program at its McArthur Uranium-Copper Project in the NT.
Although uranium is not classified as a critical mineral in Australia, it is in the US, potentially increasing American interest in the NT’s uranium assets.
Orpheus Uranium is focused on uranium exploration across South Australia and the Northern Territory.
Mining.com.au is a media partner of IMARC and will be attending the event throughout the week (27–29 October) at the International Convention Centre (ICC) in Sydney.
Write to Maddison Elliott at Mining.com.au
Main Image: Mining.com.au
