Albanese speaks up on Mount Isa

The Mount Isa copper mine closed on Thursday, ending more than six decades of operations and prompting a united North Queensland delegation of business, government and community leaders to travel to parliament.

The Keep Our Copper delegation lobbied Australian Parliament for a national solution to keep the copper industry alive in North Queensland.

The group is supported by Member for Kennedy Bob Katter who asked Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in question time if he could reassure parliament that the copper smelter is to be owned by an entity answerable to the Australian people.

“Mount Isa, which I visited with the member for Kennedy on at least five occasions, is too important to Queensland and to the nation for there not to be Commonwealth involvement,” Prime Minister Albanese said.

“Let’s be clear about Glencore, though. It is a highly profitable company. Just this year, it paid $2.2b in dividends to its shareholders.

“Australia [has] been pretty good to Glencore; it’s about time that Glencore recognise it needs to be good back to Australia. They should back the town that has backed them and has helped build the wealth of their shareholders.’

Prime Minister Albanese says this is not a government-only solution.

“Companies that own Australian smelters must step up and invest in transforming their facilities to meet future opportunities,” he said.

“Our plan for a future made in Australia is about keeping smelting and processing capabilities here in Australia, and the good blue-collar and engineering jobs that go along with them.”

Federal Resources Minister Madeleine King and Federal Industry and Innovation Minister Tim Ayres made remarks to the Keep Our Copper delegation.

Minister Ayres says Mount Isa is an area rich in future mineral resources, and it should be the Silicon Valley of critical minerals and mineral resources.

“The outcome here is uncertain. If we are going to land a future for this facility and a future for this region it is going to require all of us,” he said.

Minister Kings says she has witnessed the shut-down of three different refineries since coming into parliament in 2021: BP and Alcoa in Kwinana, WA, and BHP’s Nickel West.

“There is a future in commodities like copper and others, but also in the future of critical minerals, which our regional partners need, our global partners need not only for the net zero transition but importantly for geostrategic reasons, for defence applications,” she said.

“Queensland will be part of that, as will South Australia, as will the Northern Territory, as will WA, because there is so much work to be done.”