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Despite rising economic uncertainty, the WA FY26 State Budget handed down yesterday with a $2.4b operating surplus, including sizable wins for the resources sector. The WA Government will deliver $1.1b through the budget to secure a future that is Made in WA, headlined by a $500m investment in the Strategic Industries Fund, which brings the fund’s total value to $1b. The additional investment will support a range of key priorities outlined within the government’s Made in WA plan, including fast-tracking clean energy and major industrial projects which will be core to securing the WA economy’s nation-leading status. These investments will support a range of job-creating projects across WA and will be complemented by: $30m for new energies industries through the…

Rio Tinto (ASX: RIO) and BHP (ASX: BHP) have received environmental approval from the US Department of Agriculture to advance on of the largest undeveloped copper mines in the world. The republication of the final environmental impact statement (FEIS) by the US Forest Serve (USFS) allows the congressionally mandated land exchange, enabling future underground mine development and places thousands of acres of land into permanent conservation. The copper project is expected to produce more than 18mt over its anticipated 40-year mine life, meeting more than 25% of the US’ copper demand. Collaboration between the USFS, Native American Tribes, local copper triangle communities, civil society organisations and several federal and state agencies has shaped the project through rigorous, independent review under…

EnergyAustralia has released a draft Declared Mine Rehabilitation Plan (DMRP) for Yallourn coal mine, located in Latrobe Valley in Victoria, for public consultation. Yallourn has produced more than 1bt of brown coal since operations commenced in the 1920s and is responsible for 85% of the electricity in Victoria. Scheduled for closer in mid-2028, EnergyAustralia is developing plans to rehabilitate the site back to its original state. The rehabilitation strategy outlined in the draft DMRP has been shaped through continued conversations between EnergyAustralia, local communities, Traditional Owners and government bodies. Detailed risk assessments have been undertaken alongside extensive studies to understand the environment and what the most sustainable and safe rehabilitation strategy will be. The plan recommends improving and protecting existing…

Weir has been selected by Codelco, the world’s largest copper producer, to supply the tailings transport solution for the Talabre tailings dam expansion project in the Atacama region of Chile. The brownfield expansion project will combine the thickened tailings streams from three major mines in the area: Ministro Hales, Chuquicamata, and Radomiro Tomic. The expansion is expected to have a total productive life of 20 years, and handle a slurry thickened to ca. 70% solid content — creating the opportunity to reuse process water and increasing the safety and stability of the storage facility. The Weir solution includes a combination of GEHO positive displacement pumps and WARMAN centrifugal pumps to handle the large volume and high solid content of tailings…

The mining jersey is coming to the NRLW in 2025 with the Newcastle Knights to wear the iconic hi-vis mining colours in support of thousands of mining families in NSW. A major sponsor of the women’s team since its inception, the NSW Minerals Council is increasing its investment in the women’s game with a new three-year agreement with the Newcastle Knights that includes the introduction of the mining jersey. The NSW Minerals Council has also inked a new deal to remain a major sponsor of the club’s NRL team until 2027. The Newcastle Knights will wear mining colours in the NRL and NRLW against the New Zealand Warriors in a double-header on Voice for Mining Family Day at McDonald Jones…

The Queensland Government is tackling bottlenecks holding back one of the state’s most valuable export sectors with a high-level Coal Supply Chain Roundtable hosted in Brisbane. Queensland Minister for Finance, Trade, Employment and Training Ros Bates and Queensland Minister for Natural Resources and Mines Dale Last hosted the event, bringing together leaders from across the coal export network to drive practical solutions and unlock billions in stalled export capacity. Despite having more than 300mt of port capacity, Queensland exported less than 200mt in FY24. The Queensland Government is determined to reduce that gap, supercharge regional economies, and strengthen ties with our major coal trading partners, including India, Japan, China and South Korea. Roundtable attendees included senior leaders from key industry stakeholders and…

Fleet Space has announced a series of partnerships to develop advanced quantum sensors to fuel the growth of AI-powered mineral exploration. The collaboration with mDetect, Nomad Atomics and DeteQ, will advance acquisition and processing speed of geophysical datasets to build an innovation path for muon tomography to become a valuable input for enhancing the geological predictions of modern AI systems. As part of the company’s expansion of its vertically integrated ExoSphere platform, Fleet Space is also partnering with Stanford’s Mineral-X and MIT’s Space Exploration Initiative. Fleet Space chief executive Flavia Tata Nardini says for the global mining industry to achieve its potential as an industry leader in exploration data-intelligence, it must build the deep technologies and infrastructure that integrate breakthrough…

The NSW Government is partnering with coal-producing regions across the state to establish the Future Jobs and Investment Authority. While coal will remain an important regional employer and economic driver for decades, global demand is forecast to decrease in coming decades. Under current planning approvals, by 2040 all four of NSW’s coal-fired power stations, and 32 of the state’s 39 coal mines will close. The authority will help guide the future economic development of the four coal mining regions — the Hunter, Central West, Illawarra and North West — from coal production towards other economic opportunities and employment. The FY26 NSW Budget will include $27.3m over four years to fund the authority, initially focusing on the Hunter and Central West…

This week CSIRO has released a new online tool, LandScape+, to accelerate mineral discovery across Australia. The tool is designed to help geologists interpret their geochemical data and plan follow-up exploration programs to target new resources across a range of commodities including gold, lithium and copper. Mineral exploration in Australia faces many unique challenges due to site remoteness and access difficulty. Much of the land is also covered by a thick layer of loose soil, sand and broken-down rock — making it difficult to detect signs of valuable mineral deposits. LandScape+ uses remotely sensed data to create landform maps informed by machine learning at a 30m resolution for mineral exploration. This reduces the need for extensive on-the-ground observations and integrates…

Metso is installing a mega-class press at its Canning Vale production facility, expanding it rubber and Poly-Met wear parts production capability in Australia. The press is specifically designed to produce large Megaliner mill liners, anticipated to be operational in Q4 this year, and will position Metso as the only mill liner manufacturer in the country. The installation of the mega-class press will significantly enhance the company’s manufacturing flexibility with the ability to produce very large liners — up to 4.5m by 3.2m coverage — with weight limits defined solely by the customer’s installation capacity. The capacity to produce larger and heavier parts will enable faster and safer mill relines, delivering improved mill availability and in turn increased production for customers.…

Komatsu Australia have officially opened a new 12,500m2 fulfillment centre in Tarneit, Victoria that is powered by the fastest order fulfilment system in the market. Leveraging AutoStore — a high-speed order fulfilment system — operated by autonomous robots that move atop an aluminium cubic grid, the centre ensures a more efficient and streamlined experience for customers ordering Komatsu parts and machinery. With swift and reliable support for customers across Victoria, South Australia and southern NSW, the new facility enables next-day delivery to all regional branches. The facility has strengthened Komatsu’s e-commerce capabilities by holding more than 35,000 unique stock items, enhancing availability and reducing lead times. Customers are expected to benefit from improved efficiencies through myKomatsu as well as seamless…