❓ The Minister for Mines and Petroleum outlines the strength of WA's resources sector, highlighting job creation, economic contribution, and government support amidst global uncertainty and challenges in specific sectors like nickel and lithium.
AnsweredQoN 187Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
Resources sector
187. Mr Stephen Pratt to the Minister for Mines and Petroleum:
I refer to the Cook
Labor government's successful development and growth of Western Australia's
economy.
(1) Can the minister outline to the house how
Western Australia's resources sector is delivering secure jobs for Western
Australians?
(2) Can the minister advise the house how our
resources sector continues to contribute to WA's economy being the strongest in
the nation?
187. Mr Stephen Pratt to the Minister for Mines and Petroleum:
I refer to the Cook
Labor government's successful development and growth of Western Australia's
economy.
(1) Can the minister outline to the house how
Western Australia's resources sector is delivering secure jobs for Western
Australians?
(2) Can the minister advise the house how our
resources sector continues to contribute to WA's economy being the strongest in
the nation?
AnswerView source ↗
(1)–(2) I thank the member for the
question. I know that a lot of people in the electorate of Jandakot work within
or adjacent to the mining industry. Like a lot of us, the constituents know the
value of our resource sector.
The Cook Labor government is
fully committed to ensure that every opportunity is captured to deliver more
job-creating industries and projects in Western Australia. We are having a bit
of global uncertainty at the moment with tacos every night, but one thing we
can be certain of is that this Labor government will continue to support our
resource sector. I am happy to share that employment in WA's mining industry
reached a new peak in the calendar year 2024, with 135,693 onsite full-time
equivalent positions, making eight consecutive years of employment growth.
Separately, there were 4,200 onsite FTE positions in the exploration sector,
the lifeblood of the industry, and a further 7,800 onsite FTE positions in the
state's petroleum industries.
Iron ore, gold, lithium, nickel
and aluminium bauxite remained major contributors to onsite mining employment.
That result was supported by strong mineral and petroleum sales totalling $223 billion.
Iron ore led the way, as members can imagine—lots came from the member
for Pilbara's electorate—with $128 billion in sales, the third highest
result on record, driven by strong prices and near-record volumes. LNG
generated $36 billion in sales, albeit down on recent years with some weaker
market conditions. Gold hit a record $24 billion in sales, with that global
uncertainty driving up the gold price, while alumina recorded $7.4 billion in
sales, its highest value since 2018–19.
We acknowledge that there remain
some global headwinds in parts of our resources sector, particularly in nickel
and lithium. That is why we have responded to these challenges with support
packages and we continue to engage with participants in those sectors. We know
the importance, as I said before, of the exploration industry in WA. Despite
tight capital markets, exploration activity remains strong in calendar year
2024. Near-record mineral exploration expenditure of $2.5 billion, which
accounts for over 60% of the national spend, was invested here in WA. What were
they looking for? Gold, iron ore, nickel, cobalt, copper and other minerals,
including lithium and rare earths, were the priorities. More than $32 billion
was invested in WA's resource sector in the calendar year 2024, similar to the
previous year, reflecting sustained industry
confidence. There was also a massive $48 billion in mining and petroleum and associated
infrastructure projects committed and under construction, reinforcing the state's
strong investment pipeline.
While the search for the next
generation of mines that will underpin our state's and national economies
continue, the here and now for the resource sector continues to be healthy.
question. I know that a lot of people in the electorate of Jandakot work within
or adjacent to the mining industry. Like a lot of us, the constituents know the
value of our resource sector.
The Cook Labor government is
fully committed to ensure that every opportunity is captured to deliver more
job-creating industries and projects in Western Australia. We are having a bit
of global uncertainty at the moment with tacos every night, but one thing we
can be certain of is that this Labor government will continue to support our
resource sector. I am happy to share that employment in WA's mining industry
reached a new peak in the calendar year 2024, with 135,693 onsite full-time
equivalent positions, making eight consecutive years of employment growth.
Separately, there were 4,200 onsite FTE positions in the exploration sector,
the lifeblood of the industry, and a further 7,800 onsite FTE positions in the
state's petroleum industries.
Iron ore, gold, lithium, nickel
and aluminium bauxite remained major contributors to onsite mining employment.
That result was supported by strong mineral and petroleum sales totalling $223 billion.
Iron ore led the way, as members can imagine—lots came from the member
for Pilbara's electorate—with $128 billion in sales, the third highest
result on record, driven by strong prices and near-record volumes. LNG
generated $36 billion in sales, albeit down on recent years with some weaker
market conditions. Gold hit a record $24 billion in sales, with that global
uncertainty driving up the gold price, while alumina recorded $7.4 billion in
sales, its highest value since 2018–19.
We acknowledge that there remain
some global headwinds in parts of our resources sector, particularly in nickel
and lithium. That is why we have responded to these challenges with support
packages and we continue to engage with participants in those sectors. We know
the importance, as I said before, of the exploration industry in WA. Despite
tight capital markets, exploration activity remains strong in calendar year
2024. Near-record mineral exploration expenditure of $2.5 billion, which
accounts for over 60% of the national spend, was invested here in WA. What were
they looking for? Gold, iron ore, nickel, cobalt, copper and other minerals,
including lithium and rare earths, were the priorities. More than $32 billion
was invested in WA's resource sector in the calendar year 2024, similar to the
previous year, reflecting sustained industry
confidence. There was also a massive $48 billion in mining and petroleum and associated
infrastructure projects committed and under construction, reinforcing the state's
strong investment pipeline.
While the search for the next
generation of mines that will underpin our state's and national economies
continue, the here and now for the resource sector continues to be healthy.
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.