Australia's Future Made in Australia Agenda: Boosting Critical Minerals and Renewable Hydrogen Industries
Key Ideas
- The Australian Government's Future Made in Australia agenda aims to address economic challenges by boosting critical minerals processing and renewable hydrogen industries.
- Two proposed production tax incentives, the CMPTI and HPTI, offer support for processing critical minerals and producing renewable hydrogen with no maximum claimable amount.
- The CMPTI provides a 10% refundable tax offset for eligible entities processing critical minerals, while the HPTI offers A$2 per kilogram of eligible hydrogen produced in eligible facilities.
- Eligibility criteria, including location in Australia, emissions intensity thresholds, and investment deadlines, aim to drive investment in these priority industries and increase renewable energy capabilities.
The Australian Government's Future made in Australia agenda, outlined in the 2024-25 Federal Budget, aims to tackle key economic challenges by focusing on boosting critical minerals processing and renewable hydrogen industries. The agenda introduces two proposed production tax incentives to support these sectors: the Critical Minerals Production Tax Incentive (CMPTI) and the Hydrogen Production Tax Incentive (HPTI). The CMPTI is a 10% refundable tax offset for entities processing critical minerals, while the HPTI offers a refundable tax offset of A$2 per kilogram of eligible hydrogen produced in eligible facilities, with no maximum claimable amount. Both incentives are designed to drive investment and innovation in these priority industries.
The CMPTI targets entities processing minerals on the Australian Government's Critical Minerals list, providing support for eligible expenditure incurred from first production for up to 10 years. On the other hand, the HPTI focuses on producers of renewable hydrogen with emissions intensity requirements. Eligibility criteria for both incentives include being subject to Australian income tax, meeting investment deadlines, and having facilities located in Australia. These initiatives are estimated to provide significant support for the growth of the critical minerals and renewable hydrogen sectors, with an aim to enhance Australia's renewable energy capabilities and attract investment in value-adding industries.