MELBOURNE, June 14 (Reuters) - Foreign export credit agencies are showing a lot of interest in Australia's critical minerals resources, looking to jump start investment in new mines that are struggling to find finance, an export finance agency executive said on Wednesday.

Australia is the world's biggest supplier of lithium, a key material used in batteries for electric vehicles, as well as a major supplier of other minerals critical for the transition to new energy including graphite, manganese and rare earths.

The focus on developing Australia's mineral base has grown as Western nations look to diversify their supply chains away from China, and the country is expected to release a strategic industry development policy imminently.

"There is a lot of global interest in critical minerals in Australia," Amanda Copping, chief project and structured finance officer of Export Finance Australia (EFA), told a mining conference.

What has changed is the "sheer volume" of interest as Australia's critical minerals capability has become better known, she said.

Initial interest in financing projects from Japan, South Korea and the U.S. has been added to by investment and supply enquiries out of Europe and India, she said. Australia has been signing critical minerals partnerships with a range of jurisdictions including the UK, France and Germany.

Mine developers have often struggled to find project finance as lenders are wary given often small markets without price benchmarks and the lengthy times it take to secure permits.

And as miners negotiate which customers they will supply, finance from those partners are increasing becoming part of the package, Copping said, and foreign export credit agencies are stepping into the breech.

Arafura Rare Earths signed a non binding deal with German export credit agency Euler Hermes for its Nolans project of up to $600 million in March.

However, Australian critical minerals projects are seen as high cost, especially in a high inflation environment, Copping said. Apart from lofty power costs, Australia's wages are among the mining sector's most expensive.

As a result, junior miners have to ensure they have adequate contingencies around project financing, be it debt or equity, to give their financiers comfort the project will reach completion, she said. (Reporting by Melanie Burton; Editing by Jacqueline Wong)