Business
23 October, 2024
Will there be the political will to pause Mount Isa Mines underground closure?
Robbie Katter wants both major parties, and their candidates, to back his use-it-or-lose-it policy.
Uncertainty remains whether either major party will attempt to save underground copper operations at Mount Isa Mines.
The city has instead been receiving mixed messages – with both major parties agreeing that the state government should explore a new “viable” operator taking control of MIM but have so far refused to endorse the legislative path proposed by Robbie Katter.
And despite being on the campaign hustings for more than one month, neither the Labor or LNP candidates, or their party leaders, have provided any alternative proposal to navigate the city through the loss of up to 1200 underground mining jobs next year.
Mr Katter, who is vying for re-election on Saturday, has spent much of the year spruiking proposed legislative changes that would provide the resources minister with the discretion to open the Mount Isa Mines lease to third-party tenders.
The Traeger MP has repeatedly contested Glencore’s claim that underground copper operations are no longer economically viable.
He also claims to have had discussions with companies willing to take over the underground copper portion of the MIM lease.
Mr Katter’s proposed amendments to the Mount Isa Mines Act were rejected by the state parliamentary committee in September, which affirmed Glencore’s claim that opening a portion of the mine site to a third-party takeover would lead to “unworkable” challenges and potential legal action.
Despite this, Premier Steven Miles and LNP spokesperson for resources Dale Last both entered the debate soon after the release of the committee report, with calls for the next state government to explore a “viable” company taking over the mine site area to save the 1200 jobs that will be lost if underground copper operations cease.
As the election campaign draws to a close, Mr Katter challenged LNP candidate Yvonne Tunney and Labor candidate Georgia Heath to state their personal view on the Katter amendments.
“Mount Isa deserves to know if they are playing to win or just going to fold to a multinational who has operated with impunity,” Mr Katter said.
“The KAP’s position has been clear – we won’t tolerate multinational corporations, such as Glencore, using Mount Isa as an extension of their commodity empire while disregarding the community’s needs.”
LNP candidate for Traeger Yvonne Tunney said voters should “not lose sight” that Robbie Katter’s proposed amendments to the Mount Isa Mines Act were rejected by a parliamentary committee that spent months investigating his bill.
She said the next state government should not commit fully to the Katter bill and instead should consult more industry experts.
“We need to get advice on why this bill was rejected by the committee,” she said.
“I think we all support keeping the 1200 jobs on the mine site, but Robbie Katter’s bill might have some problems that we need to explore.”
Ms Heath told North West Weekly that she would “always back what is best for Mount Isa”.
“If there’s an operator wanting to take on the mine I want to see that happen and if laws need to change then I’ll push for that,” she said.
Ms Heath repeated claims the Miles government had demonstrated its commitment to Mount Isa through its $50 million support package as well as the CopperString project rollout.