A joint initiative between Monash University and IIT Hyderabad will bring leading researchers together to build a sustainable global supply chain of critical minerals.
The Australia-India Critical Minerals Research Hub (AICMRH) has been approved by India's Ministry of Education (MoE) to provide advice on critical minerals extraction and processing, criticality assessments, economic geology, sustainable mining practices, and supply chain analyses.
The MoE and Government of India has formed an Empowered Committee for Industry and International Collaborations (ECIIC). Critical minerals has been chosen as one of the 12 themes on which ECIIC would focus and IIT Hyderabad has been asked by the MoE to lead the country on this theme.
A Society for the Promotion of Area Resource Centers (SPARC) proposal, led by IIT Hyderabad and Monash University has brought together various Indian and Australian Universities, R&D labs and industries in the field of critical minerals. This has been sanctioned by MoE recently with funding of $1.15m and is expected to strengthen India-Australia collaborations in the field of critical minerals.
The collaboration aims to develop skills and talent to drive a transition towards sustainable resource management by following the G20's commitment to diversify supply chains for energy transitions. The two countries could also work together for carbon capture storage and utilisation, coal preparation upgrading and fugitive emissions from coal mining.
Professor Craig Jeffrey, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (International) and Senior Vice-President, said the AICMRH will serve as a pivotal platform for advancing collaborative research activities.
"This is a fantastic achievement that will greatly enhance collaborative research across India and Australia in a number of critically important areas," said Professor Jeffrey.
Professor BS Murty from IIT Hyderabad signed the Memorandum of Agreement for the project with Professor Susan Elliott AM, Provost and Senior Vice-President, last year.
He said both institutions will work together to meet the technological demands for exploration and extraction of other minerals.
"The AICMRH provides an exciting opportunity for India and Australia to work together to expand its increasingly important mineral resources partnership," said Professor Murty.
"This strategic partnership embodies a concerted effort to drive impactful advancements in the critical minerals' domain, fostering innovation and knowledge exchange on an international scale."
The AICMRH is an alignment with India's National Education Policy and the Australian Researcher Cooperation Hub (ARCH-India) of the Australian Government Department of Education. It also resonates with India's National Education Policies on promoting research collaborations.
The AICMRH aims to develop pioneering technologies for a competitive and environmentally sustainable future, playing a vital role in supporting the objectives outlined in India's National Education Policy and the G20 New Delhi Leaders' Declaration.
There are future plans to expand into the Indo-Pacific region by including researchers from other countries in the region.
