In an effort to reduce its dependency on iron ore royalties, the WA Government has unveiled a $463 million ‘economic diversification’ package. This initiative aims to position Western Australia as a premier destination for international education, tourism, business investment and trade.
Despite iron ore contributing $9.2 billion of the $12.7 billion from the mining and resources sector in 2022-23, the government is focused on broadening the State’s economic base.
As part of the State Budget, the diversification strategy includes several key investments:
- $40m for the Sustainable Geoscience Investments package to accelerate the discovery of critical minerals.
- Expansion of the New Industries Fund.
- $28m to bolster the State’s invest and trade initiatives, including a new Trade and Investment Office in Austin, Texas.
- $294m for road, port, and electricity infrastructure to meet future capacity needs.
- A $35m boost to the Industrial Land Development Fund for planning and de-constraining initiatives to attract investment to Pilbara’s strategic industrial areas.
- $28m for tourism initiatives, including attracting major events to Perth.
Industry leaders, while supportive, urge the government to further diversify and grow WA’s economy.
“[The State Government] should remain open to do more given the transformative efforts from other economies, notably the US and Canada, to redirect capital flows to drive decarbonisation,” CCIWA Chief Economist Aaron Morey says.
Warren Pearce, CEO of the Association of Mining and Exploration Companies (AMEC), says a focused approach is needed for diversification.
“The Government needs to do more to grasp the opportunity to diversify while we still can,” Pearce says.
“Western Australia needs a more focused approach to diversifying our economy, and one that leverages off the strength of the mining industry, with investment in downstream processing to realise greater value from our resources here at home.
“In an increasingly competitive international environment, Western Australia needs to do more to incentivise international investment in value-adding.”
Premier and Treasurer Mark McGowan says this commitment brings total investment in economic diversification to over $3.8b during the current term.
“The Budget looks ahead to what jobs and industries our state and the world will need,” McGowan says.
“Our continued investment aims to support new and diverse industries, attract investment, and drive job growth.”