Caravel Minerals has signed a landmark non-binding Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Kutch Copper (KCL), a subsidiary of Adani Enterprises, to jointly advance the flagship Caravel Copper Project in Western Australia’s Murchison region.

The MoU outlines collaboration on investment and offtake opportunities to accelerate the project towards a Final Investment Decision (FID) by 2026. It combines Caravel’s large-scale resource with Adani’s expertise in smelting, processing, and logistics.

The partnership also establishes an exclusive framework to negotiate a life-of-mine offtake agreement covering up to 100 per cent of Caravel’s copper concentrate production, expected to reach 62,000–71,000 tonnes of payable copper annually in its initial years. The concentrate will feed directly into KCL’s USD 1.2 billion (AUD 1.8 billion) Kutch Copper Smelter — the world’s largest single-location copper facility — in Gujarat, India.

Dr Vinay Prakash, CEO, Natural Resources, Adani, said, “Copper is the backbone of the global energy transition, and this partnership strengthens India’s and Australia’s role in building a resilient, responsible copper supply chain.”

Don Hyma, Managing Director, Caravel Minerals, added, “The collaboration marks a pivotal step in realising the full potential of the Caravel Copper Project by aligning Adani’s downstream capabilities with Caravel’s world-class resource.”

Located about 150 km northeast of Perth, the Caravel Copper Project is among Australia’s largest undeveloped copper resources, with an estimated 1.3 million tonnes of payable copper and a mine life exceeding 25 years. With an all-in sustaining cost (AISC) of USD 2.07 per pound, it is positioned among the world’s lowest-cost producers.

Under the MoU, KCL gains first rights to participate in direct equity or project-level investments aligned with the project’s AUD 1.7 billion initial capex. Financing discussions are progressing with leading banks, including Export Credit Agency (ECA)-backed options from Denmark’s Export and Investment Fund (EIFO).

The collaboration also includes co-engineering to align product specifications with Kutch Copper’s downstream needs, joint procurement for faster project execution, and leveraging the India–Australia Free Trade Agreement (FTA) to promote resource development and workforce skilling.

With global copper demand projected to rise by 50 per cent by 2040, the Caravel–Kutch Copper alliance represents a major step towards building sustainable, cross-continental critical mineral supply chains and fostering green industrial growth.