Western Australia sees in Tamil Nadu a partner in its global decarbonisation effortPremium

Western Australia sees in Tamil Nadu a partner in its global decarbonisation effort

Australia's largest state concluded on Thursday its delegation-led mission in Chennai, highlighting trade-related connection between the two states and their shared goal in transitioning to a decarbonised future.

Rita Saffioti, Deputy Premier, Treasurer, and Minister for Transport and Tourism of Western Australia, announced the Innovation Exchange Programme, an agreement aimed at fostering collaboration between the two states.

On decarbonisation, the Minister shared Western Australia's strength in mining resources and availability of critical minerals that are essential for a clean energy future.

“Western Australia has a lot of critical minerals. And as part of the energy transformation around the world, Western Australia wants to play its role,” Ms. Saffioti told The Hindu during a select media roundtable in Chennai.

While the two states are yet finalise specific agreements on how they plan to approach decarbonisation and secure battery supply chain, they are exploring various options.

According to Minister Saffioti, one of the opportunities being looked at is making Western Australian companies partner with firms in Tamil Nadu in relation to producing vanadium, which in turn will be supplied to battery manufacturers in the state and around the world. The partnership could be based on raw material processing and knowledge sharing between the two states.

Minister Saffioti pointed out that Western Australia faces a battery storage challenge as the state produces a lot of energy.