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UK steel imports will be cut by 60% from 1 July under the government’s new Steel Strategy, with any volumes above the reduced tariff-rate quotas facing a 50% duty. The move is likely to raise prices for rebar, structural sections and plate used in major UK infrastructure and building projects, particularly where designs rely on imported grades or mill sizes. Contractors and designers may need to recheck cost plans, procurement schedules and material specifications for projects tendering or breaking ground in late 2026.

Geoscience Australia is marking 80 years of geological and geophysical operations by launching a new 10‑year national geoscience strategy to guide exploration, resource assessment and hazard mapping. The strategy is expected to steer federal investment in continent‑scale datasets such as deep seismic profiles, gravity and magnetics surveys, and national drilling programs that support critical minerals targeting. For miners and consultants, the roadmap signals continued access to pre‑competitive data to de‑risk greenfields exploration and infrastructure planning across remote basins.

The UK government’s proposed ban on cash retentions in construction, following a year-long consultation, is being hailed by trade bodies such as the ECA and NFRC as a long-fought win for specialist contractors previously exposed to withheld payments used as free working capital. Legal and commercial advisers including Kennedy’s Amanda Hanmore and Osborne Clarke’s Daniel Cashmore warn the ban could drive higher project costs via performance bonds, more back‑loaded payment schedules and milestone‑only payments, and trigger more disputes over incomplete or defective works. BCIS chief economist David Crosthwaite points to project bank accounts and alternative defects and quality mechanisms as critical to maintaining delivery standards and payment security across supply chains.

Government plans to ban cash retentions in construction contracts aim to “prevent the abuse of retention payments in construction”, signalling a major shift in how risk and defects liability are managed across UK projects. The move would directly affect standard forms such as NEC and JCT, where 3–5% retentions are commonly withheld through practical completion and defects periods. Contractors and subcontractors could see significant changes to cashflow, security instruments (bonds, project bank accounts) and commercial negotiation of quality and defect-remedy provisions.

Plug-in balcony solar panels will go on sale in Lidl stores across Great Britain within months, following government moves to modernise regulations for “plug-and-play” devices that connect via a standard mains socket without formal installation. The UK is drawing on continental experience, where Germany alone adds around 500,000 such micro-PV units a year, to cut household grid demand and exposure to volatile fossil fuel prices linked to the Iran war and wider Middle East conflict. In parallel, the new Future Homes Standard will require most new low-rise homes to incorporate on-site renewable electricity generation, predominantly roof-mounted PV, alongside low-carbon heating such as heat pumps or heat networks.

Government has launched a 12-week consultation on merging the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) and Engineering Construction Industry Training Board (ECITB) into a single Industry Training Board covering construction and engineering construction across England, Scotland and Wales. The consultation, open until 23:59 on Sunday 14 June 2026, seeks views on governance, levy arrangements (including extending levy orders beyond the current three-year maximum), and the scope of employers covered. The move follows Mark Farmer’s 2023 ITB review, which called for a merged, employer-led body focused on attraction, training, retraining and retention to address structural workforce shortages.

Government plans to ban retention withholding in construction, cap payment terms from large firms to small suppliers at 60 days, and mandate late-payment interest at 8% above the Bank of England base rate written into contracts. The Small Business Commissioner would gain powers to investigate suspected poor payers, adjudicate disputes outside court, and levy “significant” fines in the tens of millions, plus force large companies to publish explanations for poor performance. Construction bodies, including the National Federation of Builders, are pushing for alternative performance mechanisms such as accessible surety bonds or insurance during the consultation on the retention ban’s implementation.

The re-election of the South Australian Labor Government has cleared the political path for long-delayed mining reforms, with industry leaders pressing for streamlined approvals under the Mining Act and faster processing of Program for Environment Protection and Rehabilitation (PEPR) submissions. Key priorities include reducing multi-year lead times for greenfield copper and critical minerals projects in regions such as the Gawler Craton and Coober Pedy, and improving coordination between state planning, native title negotiations and environmental regulation. For geotechnical and mine planners, any statutory time limits or clearer PEPR requirements could materially change front-end study schedules and risk allocation in feasibility work.

Mandatory sharing of ground investigation data under the proposed Geotechnical Data Sharing Bill is “critical” to cutting project cost and risk, AtkinsRéalis geotechnical engineer and Engineering Geology chair Dr Jacqueline Skipper told NCE. Skipper argues that making borehole logs, in situ test results and laboratory data publicly accessible would reduce duplicated site investigations, improve desk studies and help identify legacy hazards earlier in design. For contractors and consultants, she says the Bill could materially change tender pricing, contingency allowances and early-stage geotechnical risk allocation.

The Federation of Master Builders is urging the UK government to introduce mandatory licensing for all building trades as part of reforms to create a Single Construction Regulator, arguing current “halfway house” measures leave “vast gaps of no regulation”. Chief executive Brian Berry says responsible SMEs are being undercut by rogue traders operating with little oversight, causing serious financial and emotional harm to homeowners. The FMB wants the new regulator’s scope expanded to administer a state‑controlled licensing scheme that sets a clear competence baseline and strengthens enforcement.

Future Homes Hub has created an Embodied Carbon and Resource Efficiency Board (ECREB) to lead delivery of the New Homes Sector Transition Plan on embodied emissions from materials, transport and construction processes. The board, co‑chaired by Department for Business and Trade deputy director Fergus Harradence and Barratt Redrow group sustainability director Bukky Bird, convened its first meeting on 16 March. Early work will focus on resource efficiency and waste reduction to cut embodied carbon and cost, complementing the forthcoming Future Homes Standard for operationally zero‑carbon‑ready homes.

Members of the Institution of Civil Engineers can now apply for the Kenneth Watson Travel Award and the Queen’s Jubilee Scholarship Trust (Quest) Travel Award to fund overseas study of infrastructure and engineering practice. Both schemes support early-career and mid-career engineers to investigate specific technical themes abroad, such as major bridge projects, geotechnical innovations or climate-resilient flood defences, and bring findings back to UK practice. Applicants must propose a structured travel plan with clear learning objectives and dissemination routes, making these grants useful for targeted technical upskilling rather than general travel.

Publication of New Zealand’s 30‑year infrastructure strategy draws directly on the Institution of Civil Engineers’ Enabling Better Infrastructure (EBI) programme, which promotes outcome‑based planning, whole‑life cost analysis and resilience to climate risks. The plan uses EBI’s structured decision‑making framework to prioritise transport, water and energy investments, embedding asset management over multiple renewal cycles rather than single‑project funding. For practitioners, this signals growing international convergence on common planning tools and metrics, easing benchmarking of service levels, risk appetite and long‑term performance across jurisdictions.

The Treasury’s updated Green Book, issued in February, overhauls appraisal guidance for UK infrastructure by moving beyond narrow benefit–cost ratios and gross value added to include distributional impacts, place-based outcomes and long‑term resilience. New requirements to quantify social value, net‑zero alignment and climate adaptation are expected to change how options are sifted and how business cases are structured for major schemes such as rail upgrades, flood defences and urban regeneration. For engineers, this signals closer scrutiny of whole‑life carbon, asset performance under future climate scenarios and benefits to left‑behind regions.

SME house-builders are sharply curbing speculative development, with 70% of Home Builders Federation members saying current market conditions limit their ability to start new sites and 27% expecting to cut land acquisitions in the next three months. Only 41% expect to increase housing starts in the next quarter, sentiment is strongly negative in London (57% negative, 14% positive), and firms building fewer than 75 homes a year are the least optimistic. Developers face compounding cost pressures from a doubling Landfill Tax, a new £340m-per-year levy on new homes, Biodiversity Net Gain, the Residential Property Developer Tax, Building Safety Levy and the forthcoming Future Homes Standard adding an estimated 3–8% to build costs.

Steel import quotas will be cut by 60% from 1 July 2026, with any volumes above the new limits facing a 50% tariff, as the UK government seeks to lift domestic steel’s share of national demand from 30% to 50%. While producers such as 7 Steel UK back the move as support for “high quality, low carbon” UK output, the British Constructional Steelwork Association warns it will raise input prices for fabricators and frame contractors. Chief executive Jonathan Clemens predicts higher costs on government and private projects, tighter margins for downstream steelwork firms already hit by volatile energy prices, and potential job losses.

New South Wales has released a long-term coal strategy that centres on extending existing coal mines rather than approving large new greenfield projects, aiming to sustain regional employment and export royalties. The plan signals continued support for thermal and metallurgical coal operations in the Hunter Valley and Illawarra, giving operators more certainty for multi‑year life‑of‑mine extension studies, reserve reclassification and staged approvals. Geotechnical and mine planners can expect stronger regulatory focus on incremental pit and panel expansions, tailings storage capacity and progressive rehabilitation commitments tied to extension consents.

Defra’s new land use framework for England prioritises safeguarding the most productive agricultural land and reallocating lower‑grade farmland for natural flood management, but omits any reference to quarrying or construction minerals. The Mineral Products Association, whose members supply sand, gravel, masonry aggregates and agricultural lime and contribute £6.7bn GVA, says its 2025 consultation response was ignored and warns that mineral extraction’s role in rural economies and biodiversity net gain is being sidelined. The omission raises planning risks for long‑term aggregates supply to housing, infrastructure and farm productivity.

Continuing North Sea oil and gas extraction will cost the UK more than building a fully decarbonised electricity grid, according to new analysis comparing long-term offshore drilling expenditure with system-wide renewables and grid upgrade investment. RenewableUK chief executive Dan McGrail nonetheless calls for a balanced approach, arguing that offshore wind, grid-scale storage and interconnectors must grow alongside a managed decline in North Sea production. For civil and grid engineers, the findings point to major capital reallocation towards transmission reinforcement, subsea cabling and flexible generation assets rather than new offshore hydrocarbon infrastructure.

Scotland is being urged by the Association for Consultancy and Engineering to adopt a long-term “Infrastructure 2050” strategy to speed up project delivery, attract private finance and tackle a widening engineering skills gap ahead of the next Holyrood election. Ace wants a clear pipeline for major assets such as transport corridors, energy networks and water infrastructure to give contractors and designers confidence to invest in capacity and digital delivery tools. For geotechnical and civil firms, a stable 25-year framework would shape ground investigation demand, risk allocation and procurement models across Scottish projects.

Santos has launched the first stage of a “first-of-its-kind” agreement in the Cooper Basin that gives Traditional Owners formal responsibility to manage Country across its oil and gas tenements. The program establishes a Traditional Owner–led land management framework alongside Santos’ existing exploration and production activities, rather than relying solely on company-run heritage surveys. For mining and energy operators, this signals a shift towards co-designed access, monitoring and rehabilitation regimes that may materially affect project approvals, fieldwork scheduling and long-term closure planning in similar onshore basins.

US officials have delayed finalising a proposed $1.5 billion PEPFAR-linked health aid package for Zambia while pushing for broader economic cooperation that includes copper and cobalt mining in the Central African Copperbelt. The move comes as Washington seeks to secure strategic minerals for electric vehicles, grid infrastructure and battery technologies amid intensifying competition with China. Critics, including Representative Gregory Meeks, warn that conditioning HIV and infectious disease funding on opaque mining-related deals risks politicising global health programmes and reshaping how resource agreements are negotiated in Africa.

West Midlands Police’s treatment of abnormal load notifications as de facto approval requests, contrary to National Police Chiefs’ Council guidance, is forcing plant-hire firms to use paid police escorts instead of long-established self-escorting for cranes, piling rigs and rail plant serving HS2 and other schemes. A Construction Plant-hire Association survey of more than 2,000 members found over 80% reporting operational disruption, two-thirds serious project delays, and one in six facing extra costs above £100,000, with many rerouting to avoid the force’s area. Freedom of Information data show West Midlands Police’s abnormal load escort income rising from about £15,000 to £1.1m a year over five years, prompting calls for the Department for Transport to reimpose a single national regime.

The UK government has announced a package of accelerated energy measures, including bringing forward Contracts for Difference Allocation Round 8 (AR8), to bolster electricity supply resilience amid heightened global tensions. The move is intended to speed up investment decisions for large-scale low-carbon generation such as offshore wind and grid-scale renewables, locking in strike prices earlier and giving developers clearer revenue certainty. For civil and grid engineers, this signals an earlier-than-expected pipeline of design, consenting and grid-connection work, with pressure on transmission upgrades and port infrastructure timelines.

Westminster City Council has issued a 127‑page revised Code of Construction Practice that tightens controls on air quality, emissions, noise and highway/footway impacts for all demolition and construction projects in the borough. The CoCP requires developers to prioritise retrofit and refurbishment over demolition and rebuild, aligning with the council’s net zero targets of 2030 for its own operations and 2040 city-wide, and its Air Quality Action Plan (2025–2030) aiming for WHO guideline pollution levels by 2040. Contractors should expect stricter environmental standards, sustainability targets and community protection measures on future schemes.

The US Department of Energy has launched a $500 million funding call through its Office of Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation to back demonstration and commercial-scale plants for critical minerals processing, battery materials manufacturing and recycling. Targeting lithium, graphite, nickel, copper, aluminium and other battery materials, the third-round programme will fund projects in three streams: processing from raw feedstocks, critical materials recycling, and battery component production. Officials including Assistant Secretary Audrey Robertson are pairing the domestic push with Indo-Pacific supply chain cooperation talks in Japan, signalling tighter upstream and midstream control for EV and grid-storage supply chains.

Government has accepted key Nuclear Regulatory Taskforce recommendations and pledged a “proportionate” regime for consenting new nuclear projects, including large gigawatt-scale plants and small modular reactors. Planned changes include streamlining Development Consent Order examinations, tighter statutory timescales for the Office for Nuclear Regulation and Environment Agency, and clearer interfaces with the generic design assessment process. For civil and geotechnical teams, this signals earlier certainty on site licensing, ground investigation programmes and nuclear island design, potentially reducing pre-construction delay and rework.

The UK Government has announced changes to the way the Environment Agency and Natural England handle planning casework, aiming to speed up consents for major housing and infrastructure schemes. A new central Infrastructure Unit will triage and coordinate environmental assessments on nationally significant projects, with standardised templates and earlier engagement intended to cut repeated requests for information. For civil and geotechnical teams, the shift could compress timelines for flood risk, groundwater, habitat and nutrient neutrality assessments, increasing pressure on front‑loaded site investigation and design.

Canada’s proposed “buyers’ club” for critical minerals, raised by Prime Minister Mark Carney in meetings with Rio Tinto and Australian officials, would see like‑minded countries jointly contracting long‑term offtake for battery and magnet metals such as lithium, nickel and rare earths. For Australia, participation could de‑risk financing for new mines and refineries by underpinning bankable offtake, but would also expose producers to tighter ESG conditions and potential price caps. The move signals a shift from ad‑hoc spot sales towards coordinated, government‑backed demand aggregation in critical minerals supply chains.

CITB has set a £11.5m employer networks budget for 2026-27, restricting access to micro, small and medium-sized firms (fewer than 249 staff) while creating a separate large employer fund. From April, these smaller employers can book training through networks at 50% match funding, subject to new annual caps of £1,500 for micro (up to nine staff), £2,000 for small (10–49) and £4,500 for medium (50–249). Large employers will instead access a £18,000-per-year large employer fund for any in-scope training, tied to an agreed training plan.

The Financial Reporting Council has launched an investigation into two former Vistry accountants over a £165m costing error on nine housing development sites in the south of England in 2023–24. The misstatement is linked to forecasting and financial reporting in Vistry’s South division and is speculated to involve failure to account properly for construction cost inflation within its partnership model, where sale prices are fixed before build. The probe targets only the two unnamed individuals, with Vistry stating they have left the company and that it will cooperate fully.

An independent panel has allowed five objecting water companies to recover only 17% of the additional revenue they sought from customers following challenges to Ofwat’s 2025–30 price control. The ruling materially constrains bill-funded capital programmes for network renewal, treatment works upgrades and resilience schemes, potentially forcing rephasing or downsizing of major pipeline, storage and wastewater projects. Contractors and consultants can expect tighter cost scrutiny, value engineering pressure and possible deferral of non-regulatory enhancement works across the AMP8 period.

The Association for Consultancy & Engineering is urging government to create a national digital catalogue of modular design code components – including standard street types, block layouts and frontage rules – backed by automated rule-checking tools. The proposal would enable a “comply-through-code” planning route, where schemes meeting codified standards on parameters such as height limits, daylight access and active frontage ratios could receive streamlined approvals. ACE argues this digital planning infrastructure, linked to the Design and Placemaking Planning Practice Guidance, would let resource‑constrained councils apply design codes faster while maintaining consistent placemaking quality.

The first completed UK Net Zero Carbon Building Standard has been released as a free, voluntary framework defining net zero for both embodied and operational carbon, following pilot testing on more than 200 projects and review of over 3,000 public comments. Version 1 adds annexes for office buildings, allowing separate tenant-only or landlord-only verification where whole-building data are unavailable, and a ‘Practical completion on track’ route to confirm alignment at handover. Independent verification, being developed with Bureau Veritas, is scheduled to go live in Q2 2026, giving clients and designers a formal route to validate net zero claims.

Consultation on England’s revised National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) closed today, with engineers and planners warning the draft offers “all bark and no bite” on issues such as mandatory housing targets and delivery of nationally significant infrastructure. Critics argue the text weakens enforceable requirements on local plans, five-year housing land supply and brownfield-first development, while adding vague language on design quality and net zero. Concerns centre on greater scope for local refusal of dense schemes near transport hubs, potentially constraining urban regeneration and delaying major transport and energy projects.

Hungary has detained seven Ukrainian nationals and seized about $40 million, €35 million and 9 kg of gold bars (roughly $1.5 million) from two armoured vehicles travelling from Austria to Ukraine in what officials called the “Ukrainian gold convoy operation”. Foreign minister Péter Szijjártó linked the funds to a “Ukrainian war mafia”, noting that since January Ukrainians have moved an estimated $900 million, €420 million and 146 kg of gold through Hungary, triggering a money-laundering probe with counter‑terrorism involvement. Kyiv says the detainees are Oschadbank staff conducting a routine interbank transfer because Ukraine’s airspace is closed, and has opened criminal proceedings against Hungary for “illegal deprivation of liberty”.

Indigenous equity stakes in Canadian resource projects are being pushed by the First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) as a practical route to faster mine and energy permitting, with CEO Mark Podlasly arguing that ownership aligns community rights with project economics. FNMPC, now representing 186 First Nations, has supported deals such as a collective 10% stake in the 670 km Coastal GasLink pipeline and ~50% Indigenous equity in multiple electricity transmission lines, and is advising an early-stage lithium project in northern Ontario. With Ottawa’s Major Projects Office targeting two‑year approvals for major mining and energy schemes, Podlasly contends that Indigenous co-investors are far less likely to litigate or oppose projects that embed their environmental and economic priorities.

Jon Whelan has been appointed chair of the Austroads Board, bringing four decades’ experience with the South Australian Department for Infrastructure and Transport, where he is currently Chief Executive. Starting his career in a pavements laboratory, Whelan has a technical background in road materials and surfacing performance as well as network-level transport planning. His leadership is likely to influence future Austroads guidance on pavement design, asset management and multi-modal transport standards across Australian and New Zealand road agencies.

The Northern Territory Government has expanded its critical minerals guide to include bismuth, iron ore, lead, silver, uranium and now gold, signalling broader strategic support beyond traditional battery and rare earth commodities. Inclusion in the guide typically unlocks streamlined permitting pathways, targeted geoscience data and promotional backing for listed projects, which could materially affect exploration economics across the Territory. For geotechnical and mining engineers, the shift suggests increased demand for feasibility studies, resource definition drilling and mine design in both precious and bulk commodity deposits.

Ontario is shifting its critical minerals strategy away from a pure EV focus towards defence and aerospace, adding high-purity iron ore and aluminium to its critical minerals list, which now totals 35 commodities. Major EV-linked projects are being delayed or reprofiled, including Honda’s roughly $15‑billion EV and battery complex pushed back about two years, Ford’s $2‑billion Oakville plant reverting to Super Duty trucks, and GM suspending BrightDrop van output at the $1‑billion‑retooled CAMI plant. Toronto is also bidding to host a NATO‑backed international defence bank, with Ontario targeting a revised critical minerals strategy by 2027 after new consultations with industry and First Nations.

Payment reform in UK construction comes under renewed scrutiny as barrister Rudi Klein, former chief executive of the Specialist Engineering Contractors’ (SEC) Group, joins the Re:Construction podcast to assess progress on fairer cashflow for the supply chain. Klein focuses on persistent late payment, abuse of project bank accounts and the impact of long payment terms on specialist contractors delivering M&E, civils and geotechnical packages. For engineers and subcontractors, the discussion signals continuing commercial risk around working capital and contract administration on major projects.

Canada’s Energy and Natural Resources Minister Tim Hodgson says the new Major Projects Office will deliver “conditions documents” for major mines within two years of referral, aiming to make Canada the fastest G20 jurisdiction on permitting while coordinating “one project, one review” across federal and provincial regulators. Priority files include Foran Mining’s McIlvenna Bay copper project in Saskatchewan, Canada Nickel’s planned build in Ontario, Northcliff’s tungsten project in New Brunswick, Nouveau Monde Graphite in Quebec, and the Red Chris expansion in B.C. backed by Newmont and Imperial Metals. Ottawa has also launched a C$1.5‑billion First and Last Mile infrastructure fund, earmarking C$115 million for five mine‑to‑market links, and is planning a C$2‑billion sovereign fund with potential equity stakes in critical mineral projects.

Rachel Reeves’ 2026 Spring Statement, centred on a message of macroeconomic “stability” and fiscal restraint, offered no new funding envelopes or timelines for major infrastructure beyond previously announced pledges. Contractors and consultants had anticipated clarity on delivery of schemes such as the £36bn Network North package and long-term settlements for the Road Investment Strategy and rail enhancements. The lack of detail on multi‑year capital budgets and pipeline phasing prolongs uncertainty for design teams, geotechnical investigations and supply-chain capacity planning.

Reforms to the National Planning Policy Framework announced in December 2024 have yet to lift housebuilding, with the Office for Budget Responsibility’s March 2026 Economic and Fiscal Outlook showing net additions to the UK housing stock falling from around 260,000 a year in the early 2020s to a projected low of 220,000 in 2026-27. The OBR still expects planning changes to push net additions to just over 305,000 by 2030-31, compared with a current stock of more than 32 million dwellings. For contractors, developers and ground engineers, this points to a short-term pipeline dip before a potential late-decade ramp-up in housing sites and associated infrastructure.

The British Board of Agrément has had its UKAS accreditation temporarily suspended from 26 February 2026, preventing it from issuing new certificates under accredited status for now. UKAS’ action stems from a 2025 change in the BBA’s corporate structure and relates solely to administrative documentation, not to technical competence or testing capability. Existing certification work, including BBA Agrément assessments used by product manufacturers to evidence compliance with UK and Eurocode-based standards, is continuing while the documentation issues are resolved.

The Construction Industry Council has updated its health & safety certification, delivered via Accredex, to embed the new dutyholder, competence and accountability requirements of the Building Safety Act for profession-specific roles across the built environment. Aimed at professionals who only occasionally visit site, the online course offers five CPD hours and is recognised as an approved route to AQP/PQP CSCS and SKILLcard, and to a CSCS Red Trainee Card for those on academic programmes. CIC will introduce the revised course in a free webinar at 12:30 on Monday 16th March.

The director of London-based Bebo Construction Limited, Adebanjo Adebayo Talabi, has received a two-year prison sentence suspended for two years, 200 hours’ unpaid work and a six-year director disqualification after admitting three fraudulent Covid Bounce Back Loan applications totalling £150,000. An Insolvency Service investigation found he exaggerated company turnover from about £1,300 loan eligibility to claims of £200,000–£220,000 turnover and secured three £50,000 loans from different banks between August and November 2020. Investigators also found the funds were diverted to personal accounts rather than used for the company’s economic benefit.

Nabers UK Energy for Office ratings are now formally recognised by the UK Net Zero Buildings Standard (UKNZBS), allowing certified ratings to be used as evidence of compliance with UKNZBS operational energy requirements for existing office buildings. Administered since 2024 by CIBSE Certification, the UK adaptation of the National Australian Built Environment Rating System has been aligned through joint technical work between CIBSE Certification and the UKNZBS team. The move gives owners, occupiers and investors a single, performance-based route to verify in-use energy performance against one of the UK’s most stringent net-zero benchmarks.

Western governments are adopting a “China-light” industrial strategy, pouring tens to hundreds of billions into defence, semiconductors and critical minerals via tools such as the US Defense Production Act, CHIPS and Science Act ($53 billion), and the EU’s €43 billion European Chips Act and Critical Raw Materials Act. China’s integrated model still dominates midstream capacity, refining 68% of global nickel, 73% of cobalt, 95% of manganese, all spherical graphite for battery anodes, and over 90% of rare earth processing and magnet production. For mining and materials players, the key shift is policy focus from new mines to midstream conversion capacity, long-term offtake-style defence contracts, and allied coordination of minerals and materials flows.

Chile’s Ministry of Health has formally authorised the use of copper slag as an artificial aggregate in infrastructure works, including road surfacing, turning a major smelting waste stream into a regulated construction input. The decree defines copper slag as a by-product of copper pyrometallurgy and allows its controlled use in pavements and other civil works, subject to health and environmental criteria. For Chilean miners and contractors, this opens a large-scale outlet for slag stockpiles and may alter aggregate sourcing, pavement design and leachate management practices.