The Fraser Institute annual survey of mining companies showed Western Australia slipped to No. 5 last year from being the world leader in 2013, replaced by Finland as the most desirable mining jurisdiction based on investment attractiveness, factoring in perceptions of policies and geological potential. Saskatchewan, Nevada and Manitoba placed ahead of Western Australia. Queensland placed No. 27 on the list, behind the African nations of Namibia and Botswana.
…The impact of royalty payments on miners’ bottom lines last year was a likely reason that Australia was seen as a less-attractive destination for mining investment, said Minerals Council of Australia chief executive Brendan Pearson. The “stalemate in the political process through the Senate” as well as the growing “tax burden” on mining companies also weighed on investors’ minds.
Didn’t we just abolish the carbon and mining taxes?
David Llewellyn-Smith is Chief Strategist at the MB Fund and MB Super. David is the founding publisher and editor of MacroBusiness and was the founding publisher and global economy editor of The Diplomat, the Asia Pacific’s leading geo-politics and economics portal.
He is also a former gold trader and economic commentator at The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, the ABC and Business Spectator. He is the co-author of The Great Crash of 2008 with Ross Garnaut and was the editor of the second Garnaut Climate Change Review.
