Whilst there remain many challenges facing Australia and our energy mix, there is still hope on the horizon. As I have said, I have faith in the Australian spirit. 
We have the best resources in the world. We have the ingenuity, the drive, and the knowledge to maximise them. 
We should not be energy-reliant, but energy-independent. We should not be in the position that we are in – today – ever again. We should be pulling every lever available to us: coal, gas, uranium, oil – and we can do that by drilling and digging what we have in abundance here.

Mining pays the bills for Australia. These words remain as true today as when I made the same statement two years ago, when we last gathered for Minerals Week, and as true as 100 years ago.
The copper fields of Cloncurry to the development of coal in Queensland transformed my state from an agrarian economy – and cheap electricity (as well as the removal of death duties) turbo-charged the state into a powerhouse of small businesses, manufacturing, tourism and the arts. 

The Albanese Government has been dragged kicking and screaming into finally realising the urgent need to secure Australian gas for Australians, yet have provided no detail as to how they will support new gas investments, new gas infrastructure, or remove their failed interventions.

It is clear that Australia holds the minerals and the capability to supply the next mining boom, and deliver the strategic and critical minerals our partners need. What is not clear is whether we will be able to maximise this opportunity – and this is where the Albanese Labor Government has been asleep at the wheel.

Labor’s gas market interventions have failed the East Coast market, the ACCC has confirmed in their most recent Interim Gas report. 

The Government’s own consumer watchdog, the ACCC, has today warned gas shortages are imminent for southern states from the end of this year.

A Dutton-led Coalition Government will turbocharge our resources sector – and we see the future of gas as being instrumental to that.

The suspension of BHP’s Nickel West operations is one of the first casualties of Labor’s rushed, fledgling Future Made in Australia policy.

The June 2024 Resources and Energy Quarterly (REQ) release highlights the strong outlook of Australia’s resources sector, however details the need for continued support and investment in our resources sector.