News
Chamber of Minerals and Energy WA, Hancock Prospecting ramp up red tape crusade as D-Day for nickel looms
Hancock chief executive Garry Korte said the current regime of “overcomplicated, duplicative regulation and red tape” has created an environment where Australia is becoming increasingly uncompetitive with overseas markets. “Australia does not set international commodity prices, it is a price taker. It is important that government implement policies to enable Australia to be cost competitive in the long term or we risk losing a significant part of our critical industry,” he said. “We are already seeing significant closures in the nickel industry, which will get much worse if not strongly addressed. “It’s insightful that productivity has all but been absent from recent legislative changes – this topic should be front and centre of any debate about changes needed to underpin long term competitiveness.” Mr Korte said “if Australia is serious” about its critical minerals ambitions and building downstream processing facilities both levels of government need to provide support for gas as a low-cost base load energy source. “Government should consider policy changes that encourage additional gas being brought to market quickly and efficiently.”
RESOURCES INDUSTRY THE CANARY IN COAL MINE FOR IR OVERHAUL
It is another week in which WA businesses are coming to terms with another wave of changes to industrial relations laws drafted by people who do not really understand how a resources-focused economy works. It will be interesting to see how a “right to disconnect” works in a remote mining camp when you want to check on the welfare or fitness for work of a worker who is residing in premises operated by you during their non-working time.
IR changes a blow to the economy | Statement from Tania Constable, Chief Executive Officer
Australia is already beginning to see the damage flowing from previous industrial relations changes, where businesses are opting to make investments outside of Australia, and the first mining companies are now facing being roped into multi-employer bargaining.
Green activism and legal challenges threaten $10bn in gas projects
Australia’s most powerful energy producers have lashed spurious legal claims and environmental hold-ups, warning contracts needed to dodge a gas shortfall on the east coast are under threat due to delays developing more than $10bn in new projects.Queensland’s Senex Energy, half-owned by mining billionaire Gina Rinehart, said it may struggle to meet supply deals with EnergyAustralia, manufacturing giant BlueScope and building products maker CSR. Contracts with the big gas users from Senex’s Atlas expansion begin in 2026, but ongoing delays threaten the timetable. “It takes a very long time to get gas out of the ground from a standing start,” said Senex chief executive Ian Davies. The longer this drags on, the more those contracts are at risk.”
Red carpet for FIFO workers
It’s anticipated that will increase with the new direct flight offering as MinRes seeks to attract skilled workers nationwide in a tight labour market. MinRes is actively recruiting for hundreds of additional roles, including mobile plant operators, project engineers, earthworks supervisors, MC drivers and medics. MinRes boasts it is setting a new standard for the fly-in, fly-out (FIFO) experience, which includes new accommodation resorts and industry-leading food offerings.
Miners pushed offshore
The world is now embarking on a new mining boom driven by electrification, and Australia has the chance to again be a major beneficiary. History will not judge the Albanese government for misleading the country on tax cuts, but rather for taking us perilously close to missing out on this new mining boom by making it uneconomic for the wealth of the nation’s iron ore and other minerals to be invested back in Australia.
LABOR BLIND TO MINING’S VALUE
It would be a mistake to believe that just because Australia boasts enviable deposits of critical minerals, that its place in the world’s emerging clean energy mining boom is all but guaranteed.If only it was that simple; that our natural endowment directly equated to prosperity. Policy and confidence matter.
IMF forecasts of bumper iron ore prices would create Federal and WA Budget windfalls
On latest updates, the Federal Budget is within reach of its second surplus in as many years thanks to an increasing tax take and the strong iron ore price, which on Friday was $US136.08/t, while the WA Budget last month was reported to be in surplus to the tune of $3.7 billion.
Why this rock could push the budget into the black
The budget bottom line is set to benefit from billions of dollars in extra tax collections due to iron ore prices, economist predict, which will likely deliver a second surplus for the Albanese government.
Bullish mining CEOs flag challenges ahead
The chief executives of the country’s largest miners are looking to 2024 with optimism with Australia in a prime position to take advantage of the global demand for resources but they warn there are challenges ahead.