Japan, US and Australia Team Up on Gallium: JOGMEC Greenlights Western Australia ProjectA · FULL TRANSLATION
- JOGMEC, Sojitz, US and Australian agencies and Alcoa reached FID on a Western Australia gallium project
- Gallium will be recovered at Alcoa's Wagerup alumina refinery, with part supplied to Japan
- China dominates global gallium refining and imposed export controls in August 2023
- The project holds priority-support status under Japan-US and Japan-Australia agreements
Another piece falls into place in the de-risking of chip materials. JOGMEC announced a final investment decision on gallium production at Alcoa's Wagerup alumina refinery in Western Australia, alongside Sojitz, US and Australian government agencies and Alcoa itself—with part of the output bound for Japan.
Gallium underpins LEDs and GaN/GaAs compound semiconductors, and refining is overwhelmingly concentrated in China, which imposed export controls in August 2023. The project's elegance lies in byproduct recovery: gallium occurs in alumina refining streams, so retrofitting an existing refinery beats opening new mines on speed and carbon. Priority backing from three allied governments makes the signal explicit—critical mineral supply chains are being rebuilt along alliance lines. For compound-semiconductor players in Taiwan and elsewhere, a non-Chinese gallium source adds bargaining and hedging room. Watch the production timeline and volumes.
JOGMEC announced on July 15 a final investment decision on a gallium production project at Alcoa of Australia's Wagerup alumina refinery in Western Australia, made jointly with trading house Sojitz, US and Australian government-related agencies, and Alcoa Corporation. JOGMEC and Sojitz participate through JAGA (Japan Australia Gallium Associates), their Western Australia joint venture; part of the gallium produced will be supplied to Japan.
The project proceeds as a Japan-US-Australia cooperation initiative and has been designated a priority-support project under bilateral government agreements. Gallium is a critical material for LEDs and compound semiconductors, and its importance is rising with semiconductor demand. Details are per the original release.