You may be confused about the Australian mining industry as varying and conflicting reports emerge in the media.
Are there jobs out there?
Can you even hope to get a look in if you have no previous mining experience?
Is the supposed mining boom finished and should we all cry in our beer?
. . . all valid questions; and ones we answer every day here at iMINCO.
One of the core responsibilities of iMINCO is to collate Australian mining news from many sources and make it available in an easy-to-understand format. Many thousands of visitors search our website each day for clues and answers to their mining career questions.
Not everyone has their heart set on a mining job, although we do realise this is a high priority for many owing to the high wages and varied career opportunities.
Researching the Australian mining industry
Understanding the mining industry in Australia is not easy. Let’s face it, if it was simple, there would be a lot more people out there breezing into mining jobs because they possess the right mix of skills, experience, qualifications and knowledge. Without an overview of what’s currently happening in mining and which Australian mining companies are hiring, how could anyone expect to make a solid decision on developing a career in the sector?
Deciding on a mining career, investing time and money into skills-building activities and getting equipped with the right qualifications is a personal decision. One of the key decision factors is predicting the longevity of the mining and resource sector.
Two years ago, few people would have been brave enough to predict what we are currently experiencing across the sector.
Australian mining companies have made sweeping employment adjustments and the postponement of billions of dollars worth of projects has hit the industry hard. This type of news is still fresh in the minds of the majority who have fallen foul�of mainstream news-media.
What we have found is that the underlying positive news rarely finds its way to the people who value it most, rather it sits hidden amongst a mass of other information.
It’s common knowledge the mining industry has been hit with falling commodity prices that have created a ripple effect in the jobs market. Falling investment in the mining sector seems to have created a dark cloud over the industry and dampened optimism across the entire country.
So let’s look at mining investment in Australia
Is the investment still there?
Could there be another cycle of major mining projects on the peak of sweeping Australia?
Investment is the catalyst for mining jobs. Construction jobs are the initial winners where all manner of trade and semi-skilled jobs are created whist the project is in the ‘build’ stage. After that, it’s the permanent operational jobs that are the focus of many workers who look for long-term employment.
In a recent article on Australian mining investment, the repeal of the carbon tax and the remnants of the Mineral Resource Rent Tax, the question was raised whether keeping the tax would stifle further investment in Australia. For over four years, Australia was looked upon as the best location for mining investment and only recently Canada took away the crown.
Abolition of the carbon tax and the inability of the Australian government to end the mining tax will see a larger fiscal deficit than was previously expected. However, this recent report showed Australia`s position as a great place for mining companies to invest, remains strong.
Jobs will continue
With the mining tax remaining in place, the rhetoric that it kills mining investment and jobs will continue. NSW Mining for example has already suggested that “the MRRT has failed to raise any significant revenue for Australian taxpayers and threatens mining investment in NSW”.
Of course there is some merit in that previous information, as the MRRT has failed to raise significant revenue for the Australian government “� only $170m in 2013-2014, compared to the expected $3.5bn that was first predicted during�its inception.
So does this mean more investment will be pumped back into Australia?
Despite how linked investment in the mining sector is factored on the price of the minerals being mined, no one can predict with certainty what the future holds.
World events and circumstances of developing nations can change everything. Take this month, as Japaneses Prime Minister visited Australia citing new agreements and investment in Australia’s mining sector.
The exact details of the new trade agreements are not for public knowledge, however, it’s thought that the WA iron ore industry was one of the big winners in the Japanese agreement.
There is also the latest news that the $16 billion Adani Galilee Basin coal mine has been given final government approval, paving the way for thousands of mining jobs in Queensland.
The latest Queensland mining news could kick-start other coal mining projects in the Galilee Basin, which would create a mining jobs frenzy in the state.
Reserve Bank of Australia member argues it’s far from doom and gloom after mining boom
Last month one of the RBA members John Edwards, who is a former adviser to Paul Keating (and no he doesn’t speak to ghosts) and now a board member of the Reserve Bank, has a different take on Australia`s mining sector.
In a recent paper, Beyond the Boom, he argues that the Australian ‘mining boom’ did not have as big an impact as people thought and that the end of the investment cycle need not mean Australia descends into recession.
Far from suggesting the mining boom is over, and with it Australia’s economic prosperity, Edwards goes on to say that in some important respects, [the mining boom] has barely begun.
He notes, though, that it will be a different boom, one that shifts from being “about investment in mines, and high prices for iron ore and coal” to, within another year or two, being about LPG.� In this boom, he argues that “Japan and South Korea will be as important as China”.
These Asian countries have a high reliance on imported resources to drive their internal industries, which provides high export earnings in terms of technology items as well as ships and cars – all heavily reliant on Australian iron ore, coal and gas.
Keep up-to-date with Australian mining investment
I have one more thing to tell you…
iMINCO Project News will keep you informed about what’s happening in the Australian mining and resource sector.
The free weekly service gets delivered automatically to your email in-box every week. Don’t miss out on the many opportunities to develop a career in the Australian mining industry.
Project news covers the developments in coal-seam gas as well as LNG, one of the big employers in the near future.
Can you imagine what it feels like to work in the high-paying world of mining? You’ll discover how easy it is to prepare for a rewarding career in the resource industry just by reading iMINCO Project News.
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