Varun Ghosh (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to talk about our nation's resources industry ahead of the 2026 Minerals Week, which is taking place from 23 to 25 March. Australia has a long and proud history of producing valuable and high-quality resources that have been utilised here and around the world and that have made a substantial contribution to our national prosperity. The iron ore and metallurgical coal mined in Australia provides essential material for infrastructure projects around the world. Our aluminium is used in the manufacture of cars and household appliances. It is also used throughout the aviation sector. Our zinc helps create shipping containers and galvanised steel. Our natural gas powers businesses here in Australia and across Asia. It is an important feedstock in the production of fertilisers for our agricultural sector. Our copper, nickel, lithium and critical minerals are vital in the production of batteries, semiconductors and other technology that is underpinning the transition to a greener world economy.

Mining represents one of the largest contributors to Australia's gross domestic product. In the financial year 2024-25 Australia exported $385 billion worth of resources. The mining sector employees 220,000 Australians and indirectly supports more jobs, businesses and industries. These are well-paid jobs that provide financial security for hardworking Australians including many Western Australians.

The resources industry has been an important contributor to our nation's economic success. But we know the world is changing, and many nations, including Australia, are committed to shifting energy generation away from fossil fuels. This creates enormous opportunity for Australia. It gives us the chance to become a key provider of the metals and critical minerals that are essential to power the transition. Critical minerals are essential in the construction of solar panels, storage batteries and wind turbines. They will be the foundation upon which the net zero economy is built. The International Energy Agency forecasts that global lithium demand will be four times higher by 2040 than in 2024 and that demand for graphite will have almost doubled during the same period. Australia has one of the largest lithium reserves in the world and has identified deposits of graphite in Western Australia, the Northern Territory, South Australia and Queensland. Australia also plays host to the second-largest deposits of cobalt in the world, and it is one of the world's largest deposit holders of nickel as well as a host of rare earth minerals, expected to be in high demand over coming decades and expected to have strategic importance around the world.

Australia is a world leader in mining resources but has the potential to do much more when it comes to the refining process and transforming those resources. By processing and refining our critical minerals onshore, rather than just exporting raw materials, we have an opportunity to create more Australian jobs, support the energy transition and add billions of dollars to the Australian economy. The Albanese government is committed to onshoring critical parts of our mineral supply chain and to reducing our reliance on other nations. This commitment is demonstrated through the decision to support the development of rare earth refineries in Western Australia and the introduction of a refundable tax credit for the processing and refining of specific critical minerals in Australia.

By building and securing domestic capacity in critical minerals and by value adding in the supply chain, we can mitigate risks associated with supply chain disruptions, so evident in various different resource chains around the world today. We can also build the future of our economy and a future that provides high-paid, high-quality and secure Australian jobs.

Australia has a world-class resources industry. It's an industry that has delivered significant financial benefit to our nation's economy in the form of tax revenue, royalties and jobs. But, as the world moves towards net zero, the resources sector will also need to adapt. The good news is that our nation hosts some of the largest deposits of the materials required to modernise the world's energy systems and economies. We have the technology, the railways, the ports and a highly skilled workforce, which is going to be necessary to capitalise as the world transitions. We also have a federal government that supports the resources sector and doesn't just want to see it continue but wants to see it realise opportunities that are far beyond what we're currently doing. We want to see it grow, and we want to seize this moment in order to make ourselves an essential part of global transition. This government wants to see a resources sector powering the clean energy transition around globe while improving our sovereign capability and our economy here at home.