I’m thrilled to give a warm Sunshine State welcome to the first edition of the Queensland @ The Coalface Magazine. Congratulations to the team on your decision to deliver news and stories that matter to people living in regional Queensland.
Throughout the pandemic, the resources sector – backed by the regional communities in which we operate – has proven itself to be the backbone of the Queensland economy. Despite the challenges presented by Covid, we continued working, earning and employing people, and helped keep Queensland strong at a time many global economies were struggling.
As they say, when times get tough, the tough get going, and that’s exactly what resources companies did last year. I’m proud to say that in spite of the headwinds of Covid and other factors such as China’s decision to block coal imports, our sector contributed a record $84.3 billion to the Queensland economy and supported the jobs of more than 422,000 people. We also supported more than 15,000 businesses and contributed to 1400 local community groups and sporting clubs – all from 0.1 percent of Queensland’s land mass. Talk about punching above our weight!
That’s because our companies don’t operate in isolation – they are part of a region’s economy and community and rely on a multi-layered supply chain of goods and services to keep operating. Whether it’s a local bakery or coffee shop, or a large machinery dealership or mining equipment supplier, our industry couldn’t function without this support.
As the world moves to address climate change, new opportunities lie ahead for our sector. The road ahead is all about investing in technology to lower our sector’s carbon emissions, producing the raw materials for renewable energy while increasing our uptake of renewables and reducing our impact on the environment. The world needs the full range of commodities we produce in Queensland more than ever, so it’s an exciting time to be part of this important, new era of transformation.
Best wishes for a very successful launch of The Coalface. We think regional Queenslanders are going to love it.
Ian Macfarlane
Queensland Resources Council Chief Executive