Queensland is blessed with more than its fair share of natural wonders – the Great Barrier Reef, the majestic rainforests of the Daintree and Jonathon Thurston playing State of Origin football – just to mention a few.
One of the natural wonders that we don’t hear so much about is the extraordinary mineral wealth in north west Queensland. In fact, Queensland’s north west is one of the world’s richest mineral regions and in geological terms, is just as extraordinary as the state’s other natural wonders.
The province holds about 75 percent of Queensland’s mineral endowment including copper, lead, zinc and silver as well as major phosphate and uranium deposits and rare earth potential.
It is the world's second largest producer of lead (10.4 percent of global production), the third largest zinc producer (6.9 percent), the fifth largest silver producer (7.6 percent), and accounts for 1.3 per cent of global copper production.
These minerals and metals are the building blocks of modern economies. Without them we wouldn’t have smartphones, plasma screens or computers, refrigerators and whitegoods or electrical wiring or plumbing. The list goes on.
Along with the pastoral industry, the wealth of north Queensland has been a key development pillar in the region for the past 95 years.
Blessed with what seems like about half the periodic table of resources, it is no surprise that north west Queensland in particular has a long association with mining.
North west Queensland has a proud history of building thriving communities on the back of mining developments. Last financial year, the Queensland Resources Council’s figures show that resources operations in the north west generated 56 percent of the local jobs and 33 percent of the gross regional product.
The sector’s contribution to the region is more than just economic; there are more than 1,100 local business that are directly involved in supplying goods and services to the industry. There are also 124 local community organisations who directly benefit from sector support.
Despite the quality of the ore, north Queensland has long lived with a question mark over its head. What happens when the mines run out? What industry will provide the jobs in the towns, pay for the roads, build the power lines and keep the region ticking over?
The reality is that Queensland has the resources that the world needs for growth. The surge in renewable energy is driving demand for minerals through the roof. More solar panels, batteries, electric cars and wind turbines means more copper, steel, silver and rare minerals. There are 16 different mined minerals and metals in a solar panel and wind turbines are made of steel – the product of mixing coking coal and iron ore.
Recently researchers ran the numbers and concluded that “to produce equivalent power generated by fossil fuels or nuclear power stations, solar and wind require up to 90 times more aluminium, 50 times more iron, copper and glass, and 15 times more concrete”.
Similarly, a hybrid car uses twice as much copper as a traditional petrol car, while an electric vehicle will use three times the amount of copper.
This strong new demand for a reliable source of minerals is a great opportunity for the north west. The challenge of course is ensuring we can continue to produce the metals and minerals at competitive prices. The good news is we have a dedicated team, the North West Minerals Province Taskforce, working to achieving just this.
The resources sector has been ingrained in north Queensland’s past. It remains a key wealth creator today and the future appears copper-bottomed.
