India commits to invest in lithium and cobalt mines in Australia

India commits to invest $6 million jointly with the government of Australia as it explores lithium and cobalt mines in the next six months in Australia. The move is towards India looking to secure a supply of key minerals for its electric vehicle (EV) plans. On Tuesday, Khanij Bidesh India Limited or KABIL which is a mining joint venture between National Aluminum Company Limited (NALCO), Hindustan Copper Limited, and Mineral Exploration Corporation Limited, signed a preliminary agreement with the Critical Minerals Facilitation Office (CMFO) of Australia. Engagements are underway with other source countries, primarily LATAM nations like Bolivia, Argentina, Chile, etc have been endowed with lithium and cobalt in hard rock formations as well as in brine, the statement added. Lithium is a key component utilised in the battery used in EV. India via its Rs 18,100 crore PLI scheme offers incentives for companies to manufacture battery cells locally for Electric Vehicles. The biggest lithium battery suppliers to India are China and Hong Kong. Under the aegis of the G2G memorandum of understanding (MoU), a detailed MoU comprising a collaborative framework was signed between KABIL and CMFO to carry out joint due diligence of select greenfield as well as brownfield projects for identification of lithium and cobalt mineral assets for the joint investment decisions and acquiring assets in Australia. Image SourceAlso read: Australia to invest $280 million to boost economic ties with India