From Sweden to Switzerland: Promoting Western Australia’s credentials in critical minerals, the green transition, and space
Agent General John Langoulant AO and his team spoke at events and met with a range of investors and trading partners to progress economic outcomes for WA.
In March 2024, the Agent General visited Sweden and Switzerland to promote Western Australia’s credentials in critical minerals, green technologies, skills, and space.
In Stockholm, the Agent General spoke at Giga, Europe’s leading batteries conference, outlining the pivotal role that WA will play in the global critical minerals industry.
Our substantial mineral wealth, stable and secure investment environment, and impeccable record as a reliable and responsible trading partner provides us with strong competitive advantages. The pandemic and recent wars in Europe and the Middle East have highlighted the benefits of diversification of economic sectors, supply chains, and trading partners to the continued health of our economies. International collaboration will provide Western Australian and European companies access to capital, expertise, and markets, ensuring supply chain resilience and fostering innovation.
In support of this, Australia’s Ambassador to Sweden, Her Excellency Ms Frances Sagala, hosted a business lunch for the Agent General with Swedish critical mineral and green energy companies. The Agent General also met with a number of Western Australian and European companies in the margins of the Giga Europe conference. Despite the distance, Western Australians were extremely well represented amongst attendees, either working for Perth firms with mines in Europe, or European firms listed on the ASX due to the abundance of equity and debt available. We were particularly interested to hear of revolutionary Perth-headquartered companies Vulcan and Nordic Nickel, working to deliver solutions for the green transition, profits to shareholders, and positive outcomes for the communities in which they work in Germany and Finland respectively.
In Switzerland, Belenos Clean Power and Renata are pioneers in the high-density lithium-ion and microbattery markets. With more and more medical devices using battery power, the doubling of medtech and biotech companies in WA in the last five years provides new market opportunities for Renata.
Space was another focal point of the visit, with the Agent General meeting staff from the Swedish Space Corporation (SSC). SSC has a long history of engagement with WA, establishing an antenna site in Mingenew in 1999, now its largest and fastest-growing site. Data collected there serves various applications, from defence to sustainability, earth observation to geotracking. SSC is investing significantly in its WA site, including by building the state’s first optical antenna. Support from the London and Frankfurt offices will aid SSC’s integration into Australia’s space ecosystem.
All interlocutors agreed it was important to consider not just expertise, but also stability and shared values when identifying new trading and investment partners. Despite geographical distance, shared capabilities and a collaborative approach unite WA, Sweden, and Switzerland, and provide ripe conditions for deepening cooperation.
