PERTH (miningweekly.com) – The Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association (Appea) has welcomed Queensland’s newly appointed Resources Minister Scott Stewart’s endorsement of the resources sector.

In a speech to Parliament, Stewart pointed out that the resources sector in Queensland employed nearly 73 000 people and was worth an estimated A$34.3-billion.

“Queensland will be a coal exporter for many years to come which means that coal-mining and jobs will be part of our economy now and for the foreseeable future. Queensland is naturally blessed with the world’s highest quality metallurgical coal which the world needs to make steel.

“Even as the world transitions to renewables, metallurgical coal for steel will remain an essential, and therefore valuable, international export commodity for Queensland,” he said.

Steward also acknowledged that the oil and gas industry continued to do “the heavy lifting with gas production, for the domestic and export markets” and “gas is an essential part of Queensland’s economy and will continue to be so in the future.”

Appea Queensland director Georgy Mayo said the industry, which was a major economic driver for the state, welcomed this ongoing support.

“The oil and gas industry is fully committed to working with the Queensland government to support the state’s economic recovery and ensure the sector continues to support highly skilled jobs and economic growth, including across regional areas,” Mayo said.

“Oil and gas is a mainstay of Queensland’s economy with companies continuing to invest billions of dollars each year in on-going exploration and development.”

Mayo pointed out that the oil and gas industry had invested more than A$70-billion into Queensland’s economy and the sector made a significant contribution to the state including through petroleum royalties, which were forecast to increase to more than A$2-billion over the forward estimates, to help build schools, roads and hospitals.

She said the government’s plans to invest A$5-million in pipeline infrastructure to secure new gas reserves in the resource-rich Bowen basin and the A$3.3-million Strategic Resources Exploration Program would help to unlock more supply.

“The Queensland government’s ongoing releases of acreage for exploration and development are essential to building wealth, economic resilience and whole-of-economy gains for Queensland and the national economy,” Mayo said.