Australia’s national science agency has called for greater collaboration to drive innovation for a sustainable clean-energy future.

With demand for energy transition minerals doubling between 2019 and 2024 – and predicted to double again by 2030, according to the International Energy Agency – opportunities have never been so rife in future-proofing mining operations.

At the same time, new waves of digitisation and automation are reshaping how resources are discovered, mined and processed.

The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) believes meeting this moment calls for “an accelerated approach to innovation driven by a willingness to collectively experiment, learn and adapt”.

“It [collaboration] can help us accelerate that learning curve. It can help us leverage knowledge developed by others, and it gives us the ability to stay competitive in a fast-moving space. There’s a lot of learning, a lot of iteration and experimentation required, and going it alone means we learn slower,” CSIRO director of mineral resources Louise Fisher told Australian Mining.

“We will need to make new connections and collaborate with partners we’ve not worked with before to build those new supply chains, whether that’s in critical minerals, hydrogen supply or stepping into areas like sustainable aviation fuel, where stakeholders in agriculture and energy systems must work together.”

The issue, Fisher said, is moving from conception to implementation of new ways of working as workflows may not yet allow for a shift in culture.

“Innovation can be a risk-management tool but it doesn’t deliver guaranteed outcomes. Being willing to experiment and accept failure as an opportunity for learning, particularly as we head into adoption of technologies like AI [artificial intelligence], is critical,” Fisher said.

“Ensuring there are champions for collaboration and vision – having a view of what we’re trying to accomplish and how we’ll work together towards it – is a key part of making innovation successful.”

With technology and concerns around environmental impact fundamentally changing the way mining operations are carried out, innovating and leaning on strategic partnerships is no longer a nice-to-have.

In September last year, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced an emissions reduction target of 62–70 per cent of 2005 levels. The new target highlights the importance of operators supporting their environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiatives.

To do that, Fisher said, organisations need to share expertise.

“The mining industry has a track record of adopting new technologies and innovations already – such as automation and sensing to support remote operations,” she said. “But ongoing adoption and change will be required to respond to external shifts.

“For example, when looking at the increasing focus on recovery of by-products in mining, we’re seeing changes in the way we design our processes going forward. And when we look at the decarbonisation of processing, we will see the use of novel reductants and a move to ways of working at ambient temperatures and pressures where possible”

Accepting different ways of working and sharing experiences in creating more sustainable processes is key to future-proofing the mining industry, but greater skills training is also needed to help ensure the transition is sustainable.

“Across the board, we’re seeing a decline in people studying science, technology, engineering and mathematics [STEM] at university, all of which are needed in the resources sector as a whole,” Fisher said.

“To reverse this trend, we need to create new and accessible pathways into STEM careers within mining.

“To accelerate innovation, it’s also time to rethink the skills we value and broaden our national capabilities. Some of the most exciting work happens at the intersection between disciplines, and by diversifying our talent pool we unlock fresh perspectives and drive meaningful progress.” 

CSIRO is helping to facilitate a sustainable future for Australia’s resource sector by working alongside partner organisations to better inform their work, research and practice.

This includes partnerships with Northern Star Resources in gold exploration and co-leading the $10 million Green Metals Innovations Network with the Heavy Industry Low-carbon Transition Cooperative Research Centre. The four-year, government-supported initiative aims to accelerate the development of low-emission metal making in Australia.

“We have programs of research that span the mining value chain, from exploration to critical minerals processing and unlocking pathways for green metals,” Fisher said.

Through these initiatives and extensive partnerships with industry, CSIRO and its collaborators are helping turn ambition into action, creating enduring prosperity for Australia’s industries, communities and environment. 

This article appears in the February issue of Australian Mining magazine.