LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Sir – The value of mineral production in the Northern Territory [not including oil and gas] for the past year was the highest on record at $4.92bn, a 10% increase from last financial year, and the third straight year of record production figures.
Last year mineral production exceeded the $4bn mark for the first time. The year prior it was $3.63bn. This means a $1.29bn increase in just over two years.
The current Mining the Territory conference in Darwin includes the South East Asia Australia Offshore and Onshore Conference and for the first time the Environmental Management and Logistics Forum.
NT Resources week is welcoming over 850 delegates this year, generating close to one million dollars in visitor expenditure.
Mineral production directly supports thousands of local jobs.
With a number of projects now well advanced through the approvals process the industry is in a healthy position to continue to expand – this means more jobs for Territorians.
Paul Kirby (pictured)
Minister for Primary Industry and Resources.
Saturday, April 20, 2024
The freedom of the press still furnishes that check upon government which no constitution has ever been able to provide – Chicago Tribune.
In 2017-18 our mineral resource exports, including base metals, earned Australia more than $220bn (total exports exceeded $400bn for the first time).
Hard to judge (because NT figure quoted here doesn’t include oil and gas, and not all Australian production is exported) but it still seems the NT’s production value of $5bn is not much.
On the upside that indicates there is a huge potential for future exploration and development.
It is important to understand that this is the value of goods and is no indication of production.
Given terribly low business confidence and the struggling manufacturing sector a great deal of this growth must be attributed to growing market prices.
Certainly major export commodities such as manganese has seen considerable growth in value over this period.
But again, as the NT Minister for Resources said recently: “I’m not a mining expert …”
You got that right minister, you are an electrical trade unionist.