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PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Australia’s resources sector continues to contribute to investment in the Australian economy, despite the apparent end to the so-called mining boom.
Advisory firm Deloitte Access Economics this week reported that the total value of projects in its Investment Monitor database rose by A$5.1-billion during the September quarter, to A$749.7-billion.
The list only includes construction and investment projects with a gross fixed capital expenditure of A$20-million or more.
Deloitte noted that the value of definite projects in the database, those classified as under construction or committed, increased by A$3.1-billion in the September quarter. However, despite the gain, the value of definite projects in the past year fell by 17.7%, with the completion of the Australian Pacific liquefied natural gas (LNG) project in late 2016 and the Gorgon LNG project in early 2017.
Some 19 projects moved through the planning stage and have now been classified as under construction, including the A$800-million Northern gas pipeline.
Further, the value of planned projects in the September quarter, classified as those under consideration or possible, rose by about A$2-billion in the quarter.
Meanwhile, A$5.3-billion worth of projects were completed during the September quarter, including BHP’s A$1-billion Longford gas conditional plant, the A$660-million upgrade to the Port Pirie Smelter, and the A$456-million Nova nickel and copper mine.
Looking at the resources sector, Deloitte Access Economics noted that there was only one iron-ore project currently in the Investment Monitor, which was no surprise given the forecasted ease in global iron-ore prices.
Coal projects accounted for A$3.4-billion worth of investment under way, the largest of which was the A$1.8-billion Byerwen project, in Queensland, being developed by the QCoal Group.
The multi-billion dollar Carmichael coal mine was also on the horizon, with first production targeted for 2020, while a further A$50-billion worth of coal projects were at various stages of planning across the country.
In the base metals sector, construction activity is being led by the A$916-million Carrapateena copper project, in South Australia, while the pipeline of work is being dominated by mining major Rio Tinto’s A$2.6-billion Amrun bauxite mine development.