Western Australia has been named the nation’s destination of choice for mining investment according to the Department of Mines and Petroleum’s 2015-16 financial year statistics.
Richard Borozdin, general manager policy and coordination, said WA attracted 66 per cent of the nation’s total mining investment in 2015-16, with its mineral and petroleum industry valued at $87.9 billion.
“The statistics show the value of the industry has decreased 12 per cent since last year, however, given the sector continues to experience challenging times, the findings would suggest it’s not all doom and gloom for WA,” he said.
“While the total sales value of the minerals sector declined, the volume and size of the industry is at a record level.
“Iron ore sales volume reached a record 757 million tonnes from a total of 31 projects and remains the state’s most valuable commodity.”
The value of WA’s gold sales has also increased for the second year in a row, reaching a record $10 billion.
The state has an estimated $97 billion of resource projects under construction, with $46 billion allocated for future projects.