QRC on warpath over mining tax signals

The Queensland Resources Council has railed against suggestions of a new mining tax on coal and gas producers, saying the sector would fight such a move every step of the way. The peak group has called for cool heads and common sense to prevail in the face of concerns over power affordability and security. QRC chief executive Ian Macfarlane said a new tax would be a disastrous move by the Federal Government and lead to higher, not lower, power prices for consumers. “Introducing a new mining tax on the resources sector, on top of the billions in taxes and charges coal and gas companies already pay to state and federal governments, will kill off investor interest in future resources projects in Australia, it’s as simple as that,” he said. “The resources sector is already Australia’s highest company taxpayer by far, and on top of that companies pay substantial royalties, taxes and charges to state governments. Offshore oil and gas companies also pay a Petroleum Resource Rent Tax. “Companies will simply walk away from investing in Australia if government taxes keep going up. “History shows time and again that government manipulation of commercial markets does not work and has a detrimental effect on a country’s economy. “A better solution to reducing power prices is to boost our gas supplies, which means Victoria and New South Wales need to take a leaf out of Queensland’s book and develop their own gas fields to meet the growing needs of their populations, instead of piping in Queensland gas from thousands of kilometres away. “Queensland had the foresight to develop its coal seam gas fields 20-plus years ago, which involved local and international companies investing billions of dollars into expanding the gas industry, to the enormous benefit of Australians living and working on the east coast now.” QRC chief executive Ian Macfarlane. Mr Macfarlane said introducing a new energy tax would be the last straw for international investors and cripple any chance of Australia becoming the ‘energy superpower’ it has the potential to be. “We’re already seeing companies like BHP and Peabody Energy saying they don’t see investment opportunities in Queensland right now because of the Palaszczuk Government’s decision to suddenly increase coal royalty tax rates to the highest levels in the world," he said. “This should be a red flag to any government because resources investment equals jobs, economic activity, taxes and royalties, yet here we go again with another new tax on resources being considered. “Companies need stable government policy settings so they can make responsible, long-term decisions on behalf of investors. Moving the goal posts once a project is already financed and off the ground is poor form and poor practice, and a clear disincentive to future investment."

QRC on warpath over mining tax signals

Industry Queensland

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