France eyes WA green iron, uranium alongside new critical minerals partnership - The Australian Mining Review

France has signalled interest in Western Australian green iron and uranium as part of a new critical minerals partnership. The move reflects France's strategy to diversify mineral supply chains away from China and secure feedstock for its own energy and manufacturing sectors. Uranium is relevant to France's established nuclear fleet. Green iron production, smelted using renewable energy rather than coal, aligns with France's industrial decarbonisation goals.

Where this fits

This story touches sovereignty and the firm-power case. France is explicitly seeking to de-risk its supply chains from China. Australia holds world-class uranium reserves and iron ore deposits, yet Australia has banned nuclear power by law while betting its energy transition on renewables. The paradox is sharp: France wants our uranium to fuel dispatchable, low-emission baseload power, and our iron ore to feed green manufacturing. But Australia is locked out of the nuclear option and must finance its energy transition through a renewables-plus-gas pathway that remains dependent on imported batteries, panels and inverters, most of the supply chain China owns.

What it means

A France partnership on uranium is a geopolitical signal that nuclear is central to credible decarbonisation and energy security among US-aligned democracies. It also underscores that Australia's energy sovereignty is incomplete. We have the raw materials, uranium and iron, that align with a firm, low-emission, domestically controllable energy base. Instead, we are building a renewable grid that requires Chinese-made equipment, gas for firming, and an expanded transmission network. A partnership with France on minerals is welcome. A partnership on the energy model itself, one that includes nuclear, would be more valuable still.