SYDNEY - Australia's industry minister said on Wednesday the nation's plan to boost "green" aluminum exports would not be derailed by the threat of US tariffs, saying American customers would only end up paying more for a product in global demand.

After US President Donald Trump said he would consider an exemption for Australia from a flat 25 percent tariff on steel and aluminum imports, his adviser Peter Navarro told CNN in an interview "Australia is just killing our aluminum market".

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The executive order imposing tariffs said the volume of aluminum from Australia had surged after it was granted a tariff exemption by Trump in 2018, and was 103 percent higher in 2024 than the average volume for 2015 to 2017.

"Australia has disregarded its verbal commitment to voluntarily restrain its aluminum exports to a reasonable level," the order read.

Industry Minister Ed Husic said on Wednesday that Australia would argue vigorously for a new exemption for its aluminum as a strong ally with defense ties, and would not cut back aluminum exports to the United States, where there is high demand on the West Coast.

READ MORE: Australia says working on exemption from US steel, aluminum tariffs

"The world has a high demand for our aluminum; we need it as part of the transition to net zero," he told reporters at the National Press Club in Canberra. "The question is for our American friends do you really want to pay more for that product that you've got a big demand for?"

The center-left Labor government of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese faces a national election by May, and announced a plan last month to spend A$2 billion for aluminum smelters to switch to renewable electricity to secure up to 75,000 direct and indirect jobs.

READ MORE: Australian PM commits $1.2 billion to incentivize green aluminum production

Labor has organizational ties to the metal worker union, one of Australia's largest unions.

Husic, who said he was the son of a metal worker, said aluminum exports support thousands of jobs in rural Australia.

Australia, the world's sixth-largest aluminum producer, accounted for 1 percent of steel imports into the US and 2 percent of its aluminum imports.