The alliance of Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, the US and the UK was announced at the COP15 event in Montreal, Canada.

The initiative was led by Canada.

"Current geopolitical dynamics have contributed to stresses within critical minerals value chains, leaving many of Canada's friends and allies looking for secure, reliable supplies of these resources and the clean technologies they enable," the Canadian government's Natural Resources Canada department said.

The Alliance aligns with the G7 2030 Nature Compact commitment to halt and reverse biodiversity loss by 2030 through a global system change to reduce greenhouse gas emissions with a focus on sustainable and inclusive development, it said.

Through the Sustainable Critical Minerals Alliance, members will voluntarily work toward developing sustainable and inclusive mining practices and sourcing critical minerals.

Key areas include industry practises that prevent biodiversity loss, support local and Indigenous communities and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

"Australia is strongly committed to sustainability and the highest environmental and social governance standards, and we believe the development of new low-emissions technologies provides a great opportunity to promote those ESG standards across the world," Australian resources minister Madeleine King said.