Key Focus Areas

Biotechnology / HealthTech
Germany and Australia recognise biotechnology as a key technology for future innovation and competitiveness. This focus group explores and advances new areas of bilateral synergy.

Focus Group kick-off meeting on Thursday, 27 August.

Critical Raw Materials
Critical raw materials are central to the energy transition, industrial resilience, and future competitiveness. This focus group explores new opportunities for German-Australian collaboration across supply chains, innovation, and investment.

Focus Group kick-off meeting was held in July. Participants agreed that the focus group should serve as a practical forum connecting government, industry, investors and researchers, with a particular focus on strengthening German–Australian cooperation across critical raw materials value chains and an emphasis on developing concrete initiatives such as webinars, white papers, round tables, policy engagement and industry collaboration.

Renewable Energy / Hydrogen
This group will build on the work that has been initiated by the H2 roundtable and subsequent publication of the report. It will expand into other areas of renewable energies exploring opportunities on the basis of the energy partnership between Germany and Australia.

Focus Group kick-off meeting on Wednesday, 2 September.

IT / High-Tech
Both Australia and Germany have significant investments in the IT industries, such as quantum technology and artificial intelligence. This group will look on how to build on the existing partnerships.

Focus Group kick-off meeting on Monday, 7 September.

Defence
With the signing of the EU-Australia Security and Defence Partnership, this group will be looking at how industry can work together to add value and improve our collective security.

Focus Group kick-off meeting on Tuesday, 8 September.

Space
German and Australian space industries are already cooperating. This group will be investigating how we can cooperate to build the space industry.

Focus Group kick-off meeting on Wednesday, 9 September.

New Zealand
This focus group will bring together members and friends with an interest in New Zealand as many of our members have an interest in both Australia and New Zealand. The group will focus on trade relations between Germany and New Zealand and how the EU_NZ Free Trade Agreement can benefit members.

Focus Group kick-off meeting on Friday, 4 September.

EU–Australia Free Trade Agreement
This group will resume the work that the Business Council had done during the negotiation phase of the Free Trade Agreement. It will focus on the opportunities arising under the Free Trade Agreement to further strengthen bilateral trade in goods and services.

Focus Group kick-off meeting on Tuesday, 1 September.