ALL EYES are on exploration in Queensland this week, with a second announcement from the State Government that supports the future development of Queensland’s mineral wealth. 

Yesterday’s opening of the fifth round of funding through the Collaborative Exploration Initiative was followed by today's public release of new and historical exploration data that will help explorers in their quest for the next big discovery. 

Queensland Resources Council (QRC) chief executive Ian Macfarlane has welcomed the announcement by Resources Minister Scott Stewart in Parliament that almost 20,000 new exploration reports spanning the past 50 years are now publicly and freely available. 

“Today’s announcement places Queensland firmly in front of competing resources jurisdictions,” Mr Macfarlane said.

“Both the QRC and our exploration arm, the Queensland Exploration Council (QEC), have been advocating for many years for the government to provide access to this information, most recently in our 2020 QRC Streamlining Report,” he said. 

“Combined with 60,000 existing reports, the expanded database will be a boon for our explorers and should further lift investment in exploration activity in Queensland. And it couldn’t be a timelier boost for the resources sector to maintain its vital role in economic recovery during and after the COVID pandemic.” 

QEC chair Kim Wainwright said access to pre-competitive geoscience data is a key driver in growing exploration activity. 

“This data release will contribute significantly to discoveries of the mineral and gas resources required to meet the world’s transition to a low-emission economy,” Ms Wainwright said. 

“Much of this data has never been made publicly available before, so it is a momentous collaborative achievement by the resources sector and the Queensland Government to get to this day.” 

The QEC's annual Exploration Scorecard shows that pre-competitive geoscience data is highly valued amongst the state's explorers, with nearly half placing it as one of the top three government initiatives beneficial to their business in 2020. 

Click here to view the Geological Survey of Queensland Open Data Portal.

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AS WORLD LEADERS join US President Joe Biden for his landmark climate summit starting tonight, Australian corporate interest and activity in climate action is surging, according to independent industry association the Carbon Market Institute (CMI).

Membership to the CMI has grown 36 percent this financial year with Coles signing on this month as the 100th member, following the retailer’s commitment to using 100 percent renewable electricity by the end of FY25, reducing Scope 1&2 emissions by more than 75 percent by the end of FY30 (from a FY20 baseline) and achieving net-zero emissions by 2050.

Other recent CMI sign-ups include the NAB, HSBC, futures exchange FEX Global, regenerative farming business Macdoch Ag Group, carbon capture and storage research facility CO2CRC, and petroleum company Ampol.

CEO of the CMI John Connor said the surge in membership across the carbon market value chain was further evidence that this year is lining up to be a crucial one for corporate emissions reduction policies.

“Australian companies are now looking for economic opportunities in the transition to net-zero emissions and there is growing demand for more sophisticated carbon market services,” Mr Connor said. "FEX Global, for example, is looking to offer exchange traded futures contracts for low carbon energy and environmental products.

“While we welcome the Morrison government’s pragmatic approach to developing technologies to help Australia reach net-zero emissions, we are yet to see Australia commit to the scale and speed, or the policy framework, required to play our fair role," Mr Connor said.

“This year, whether at the Biden Summit or at COP 26, I hope to see other existing policy levers - such as strengthening the Safeguard Mechanism - brought in, to give clarity to Australian companies as they make key investment calculations.”

Coles Group’s chief sustainability, property and export officer, Thinus Keeve, said the company was proud to be the 100th corporate member of the Carbon Market Institute. 

“CMI provides a great platform to collaborate and share knowledge, something we have highlighted as a key pillar of our recently released sustainability strategy," Mr Keeve said. "Together to Zero acknowledges our commitment to work together with all stakeholders towards net zero greenhouse gas emissions and CMI provides an opportunity to do that."

FEX Global executive chairman Brian Price said, “We see opportunities in Australia’s future carbon market, with Australia well positioned to become an Asian energy and environmental finance hub.” 

FEX Global group executive for market infrastructure, Les Hosking, who was also CMI's first chair, said, "I am proud and delighted to be able to return to CMI as a member, and to be involved and contribute to the next phase of formation of 'carbon markets'."

Macdoch Ag Group, through its Wilmot Cattle Co, recently achieved a ground-breaking sale of private market carbon credits in the US.

Macdoch director, Eric Lawrence said, "We see an opportunity to achieve outcomes like this for a growing number of Australian farmers through the technological and practical support of farming practice change and the development of Australia’s carbon markets. We welcome CMI as a focal point and a channel for advocacy in realising this potential.”

CO2CRC chief executive David Byers said, “As a leader in carbon capture utilisation and storage research, CO2CRC joined CMI because its member network comprises a wide range of organisations pursuing a similar goal to us.

"Being a CMI member offers CO2CRC insights into national and global developments in carbon markets and policies, which stimulates the wider industry application of low emissions technologies like CCUS.”

CMI's John Connor said, “As our members show, the greatest value in joining CMI comes from the collaboration, knowledge-sharing and commercial opportunities that come from participating in its working groups, forums and its annual Australasian Emission Reduction Summit. 

“CMI also works robustly but constructively with governments to build current carbon markets and carbon pricing schemes, it recently released its Advocacy Positions which it will update each year.” 

About the Carbon Market Institute

The Carbon Market Institute is the independent industry association for business leading the transition to net zero emissions. Its members include primary producers, carbon project developers, Indigenous corporations, legal and advisory services, insurers, banks and emission intensive industries developing decarbonisation and offset strategies.

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THE QUEENSLAND Resources Council (QRC) has welcomed the Federal Government’s announcement of a further $539.2 million in funding for new emissions reduction projects, calling it a necessary and pragmatic step towards helping Australia meet global emission targets.

QRC chief executive Ian Macfarlane said climate change is a critical global challenge and the resources sector, as Queensland’s largest export industry - was heavily invested in finding a responsible solution.

“QRC members are actively pursuing and investing in emission reduction initiatives to reduce their carbon footprint, so these new Commonwealth funds will help accelerate that progress,” Mr Macfarlane said.

“It’s also great to see the Federal Government recognise the sequestration opportunities available in Queensland like the work that Glencore and Millmerran Power Station are doing near Wandoan.

“With 60 percent of our member CEOs currently considering hydrogen-related business opportunities, and a further 10 percent already committed to hydrogen projects, the news of this federal funding will be well received across our sector," he said.

“Resources companies are heavily reliant on technology, so investing in low emission technologies like hydrogen and carbon capture use and storage (CCUS) helps position our sector as a sustainable and innovative resources powerhouse, and cements future opportunities for Queenslanders.”

Mr Macfarlane said the QRC looked forward to continuing to work constructively with the State and Federal Governments to provide the technological solutions necessary to ensure the resources sector can thrive while Australia meets its emissions reductions targets under the Paris Agreement and beyond.

He said Queensland already has a range of hydrogen projects and studies underway such as Origin’s green hydrogen export project in Townsville and Stanwell’s renewable hydrogen export facility in Gladstone, with more projects expected in the future.

A number of QRC member companies are also involved in researching how to decarbonise their operations:

• Anglo American has been working with global energy company ENGIE to develop the world’s largest hydrogen-powered mine haul truck, which is expected to match or exceed the performance of its diesel equivalent with the benefits of cleaner air, less noise and lower maintenance costs; 
• Glencore’s Raglan nickel mine in northern Quebec has run on a micro-grid powered by an Arctic-rated wind turbine generator connected to a hydrogen energy storage unit since 2015; 
• Anglo American, BHP and Fortescue have formed a Green Hydrogen Consortium to look at ways to use green hydrogen to decarbonise their operations globally.

Mr Macfarlane said Gladstone was well suited to being one of several ’clean hydrogen hubs’ across Queensland because of its long history of building new export industries to service international demand for commodities such as coal, aluminium, timber and LNG.

“Much of the engineering expertise necessary for a hydrogen industry is already available in Queensland because of all the work that’s been done to build LNG projects on Curtis island, “ he said

Mr Macfarlane said Queensland is ideally suited to support a thriving hydrogen export industry with 300-plus days of sunshine a year, close proximity to large Asian export markets and a history of co-existing with other regional industries.

“The resource sector also has the essential skills base and strong safety culture that can drive the state’s hydrogen sector forward on a large scale, and position Queensland as a leading producer of this emerging renewable technology,” he said.

For more details read the QRC’s latest State of the Sector report.

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THE Joint Standing Committee on Migration will hold a series of public hearings in Melbourne, Albury and Shepparton from April 21–23, 2021.

The committee has planned a busy program of public hearings and site inspections to investigate in more depth the challenges facing businesses and organisations who need to find and hire skilled migrants to fill job vacancies.

"The committee is looking forward to hearing from groups such as EY and CEDA who have considered this issue in detail, as well as exploring the practical difficulties faced by Australian business owners who have experienced navigating the skilled migration program," Mr Leeser said.

"Businesses such as those the committee will visit in regional NSW and Victoria have been vocal in their concerns about how hard it can be to fill jobs. Speaking directly to these businesses will give the Committee a valuable perspective on these issues."

More details on the inquiry and the hearing program are available on the Committee website.

Public hearing details

Melbourne

Date: Wednesday 21 April 2021
Time: 9am to 3.30pm
Location: DoubleTree by Hilton, Flinders Street, Melbourne

Albury

Date: Thursday 22 April 2021
Time: 1.30pm to 3.30pm
Location: Mantra Albury Hotel, 524 Smollett Street, Albury

Shepparton

Date: Thursday 22 April 2021
Time: 12.30pm to 3pm
Location: Parklake, 481 Wyndham Street, Shepparton

The hearing will be broadcast live at aph.gov.au/live.

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