Resources, Water and North Australia Minister Keith Pitt today visited a major iron ore mine in the Pilbara area of ​​Western Australia and thanked the industry for having supported the Australian economy throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Pilbara is the most important mining region in the world. With world prices currently at record highs, our exports are forecast to hit a new high of A $ 136 billion this fiscal year, up from the previous record of A $ 103 billion last year.

Minister Pitt said world iron ore prices hit new highs in 2021 to well above US $ 200 per tonne in recent weeks, breaking the previous record ten years ago and offering a boost. welcome thumbs up to the Australian economy as the world recovers from the impact of COVID. 19 pandemic.

“Australian iron miners are among the most efficient in the world, supplying record volumes of high quality Australian iron ore to major trading partners around the world,” Minister Pitt said after visiting BHP’s Jimblebar mine in Pilbara .

“Our major miners have made concerted efforts to reduce production costs over the past 10 years, and those efforts are paying off.”

Minister Pitt said the resource sector and exports have helped support Australia’s continued economic growth throughout the COVID-19 recession, accounting for around 10% of Australia’s GDP and directly employing around 262,000 Australian men and women, mostly in regional areas.

Iron ore is Australia’s largest commodity export and is expected to bring Australia around A $ 700 billion over the six years to 2025-2026. Iron Ore supports 45,600 direct Australian jobs and is one of the largest employers of Indigenous Australians.

In Western Australia, iron ore royalties alone exceeded $ 5 billion in the six months to December 31, 2020.

Nationally, last week’s budget said higher iron ore and resource prices had improved corporate earnings prospects, leading to an increase in corporate tax forecasts of $ 11.8 billion over four years until 2023-2024.

“I commend our iron ore sector for its strength, reliability and resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic, and for its continued support for the Australian economy,” said Minister Pitt.

“Rising royalties and tax revenues continue to support our economy and help pay for essential services Australians rely on, such as schools and hospitals, roads, infrastructure and the defense force, to the benefit all Australians. ”