Federal Minister for Resources Madeleine King and Western Australian Minister for Mines David Michael met with nickel producers last week to discuss challenges facing the industry.
“It was a very constructive discussion for me and Minister Michael to get some input from the industry and how we can assist the nickel industry in this country to thrive and continue in difficult international circumstances,” King said.
King said that as a result of the roundtable, the government has agreed to pursue common user infrastructure, such as ports, rails, and roads, to help give the nickel sector a boost in WA.
In another exciting development, the nickel sector might soon receive some welcome tax breaks.
“I’ve committed to accelerate talks with the Treasury over the production of tax credits and how they might be applied into the nickel industry and more widely into critical minerals sector as well,” King said.
“Another short‑term commitment is to again look at how we can work on the approvals processes for mines and productions and refining.
“Minister Michael and I will both work on that.”
King also said that the government was committed to addressing the more medium-term issue facing nickel producers, which is remaining competitive in a market dominated by Indonesia’s relatively cheap product.
The Minister is advocating to the international market for an environmental, social and governance (ESG) metric for lithium and nickel pricing.
This would see a separate pricing on the market for commodities produced sustainably.
“We want to see a recognition of the differentiation between how we produce our nickel,” King said.
“We produce it with high environmental standards, we produce with it high governance standards, we produce it ethically and responsibly, and sustainably.
“This is something that is reflected in the pricing of the minerals and resources that we produce in this country, and it is only fair that it is reflected in any international standard that is applied to them.
“This would affect pricing, and therefore, the viability of the industry here in Western Australia.”
Quotes have been edited for clarity. Original transcript here.
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