FEATURE – Materials Engineering for Australia’s Mining, Oil and Gas Sector
Materials Engineering for Australia’s Mining, Oil and Gas Sector
Mining is Australia’s largest sector. According to the Australia Bureau of Statistics, it accounts for more than 10% of the nation’s economy. It is particularly crucial for securing Australia’s economic future and prosperity.
Together, mining, oil and gas production reached $221.2 billion over the 2019–2020 reporting period, which positions Australia as a strong domestic and international economy. Minerals have been crucial to Australia’s long-term economic future for some time. From the early gold rushes to the mining boom—the sector is underpinned by high demand for commodities in industrialising economies like India and China. In fact, Australia is the world’s largest exporter of black coal, iron ore, lead, 42 | APRIL 2022
zinc, and alumina. It is also the world’s second largest exporter of uranium. This positions Australia as one of the globe’s top five producers of minerals commodities overall. Western Australia and Queensland are the cornerstones of Australia’s mining sector, as the most resource-rich states. The sector employs nearly over 240,000 Australians—led by coal, iron ore, and gold mining personnel. In fact, the sector is on an upwards trend. Workers grew by 4.9% at the 2019–2020 Australian Census reporting period. This was driven by increased demand and ongoing supply chain issues. The Chief Executive of the Minerals Council of Australia, Tania Constable said Australia’s gross value add from mining was 11.1% in 2019–2020, when BACK TO CONTENTS
compared to just 4.6% between 1999–2000. “The Australian minerals industry is a major contributor to investment, highwage jobs, exports and government revenues in Australia,” she said. Even throughout the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the sector has pivoted towards a stable and profitable future. The sector was identified as an ‘essential service’ in March 2020, which allowed it to continue working relatively unscathed in light of nationwide lockdowns. Australia’s mines are relatively isolated away from the major capital cities, and ongoing exploration allowed the sector to guarantee confidence in its long-term ambitions. “The mining industry has been a pillar WWW.MATERIALSAUSTRALIA.COM.AU
