Mining company’s knock-on risk risks being passed onto Townsville

Townsville’s economic significance to the North West Minerals Province risks exposing it to the looming 1200 job losses, according to northern politicians.

A Fly In Fly Out worker travels by airport to their place of work. Politicians such as Kennedy Federal MP Bob Katter say FIFO workers would be impacted by job losses in Mount Isa. Picture: Supplied

Politicians fear Townsville could be vulnerable to the economic fallout from 1200 job losses 900km to the south west, as the major city most connected to the contractor and services supply chain, according to politicians from all sides of the political spectrum.

But Glencore’s workforce figures suggest the direct job impacts will be minimal against Townsville, but which would be to the detriment of Mount Isa.

Traeger MP Robbie Katter has gone to political war against Glencore over its commercial decision to close its Mount Isa Mines underground copper operations Exterprise, X41 and Black Rock, and its concentrator, by the middle of next year.

But he has more recently slammed Resources Minister MP Scott Stewart for not taking a harder stance against the Swiss mining giant, which said it was closing the mines because they were not commercially viable.

Mr Stewart acknowledges “it’s going to be tight” as he fights to keep his seat of Townsville and the ministerial portfolio in the state election next month, but said his “door was always open” for Mr Katter to talk to him.

Minister for Resources and Critical Minerals Scott Stewart at the official opening of the CopperString Experience Centre in Townsville. Picture: Shae Beplate.

“We know that there are certain numbers of those people who live in Townsville and work out at Mount Isa,” Mr Stewart said.

“We need to do everything we can to ensure those jobs stay in Mount Isa with that Glencore mine.

“Now, that’s why we’ve backed this with a $50m program, $30m to look at other mines to keep those workers in that particular area, but $20m to also aid some of those businesses out in that space.”

Glencore would also close its Lady Loretta zinc mine about 140km northwest of Mount Isa.

The biggest potential project for the region was the Eva Harmony project, in Cloncurry, which has been offered $20.7m in state government funding if it can commit to development by the start of 2026.

After touring the mine site recently, Mr Stewart was convinced the South African mining giant would commit to the project.

Map overview of the Eva Harmony project in the North West Minerals Province and in the Cloncurry Shire.

“In fact, I was actually just out there looking at their accommodation site, which was all levelled already to start that construction, so things are going ahead really, really well,” he said.

But he said more investment would be needed.

Shadow Resources Minister, Burdekin MP Dale Last, said “the clock’s ticking” to alleviate the numerous job losses in the North West region.

Aerial view of Quayside Terminal, Port of Townsville

“If we were successful on October the 26th those conversations with Glencore will be an absolutely priority for the incoming government and what it means for that community going forward,” Mr Last said.

“It affects all of North West Queensland and including Townsville, and you know, if ever you want an example how those sorts of closures affect the community, have a look what happened when Yabulu closed down.”

Hope for the North West Minerals Province’s future is the completion of the $6.2bn CopperString transmission line, which could increase viability of mines within the North West Minerals Province, but there was a four year gap between its completion and the Glencore redundancies.

Yirendali Traditional Owners representative Jim Hill and Queensland Premier Steven Miles at the groundbreaking of the CopperString project at Hughenden.

Mr Katter staked his reputation on the belief copper operations remained viable at Mount Isa Mines, but perhaps not at the scale and interests of a “global empire”.

He said four groups had approached him to show interest in doing so.

“I really am unhappy with the Mines Minister in Queensland, Scott Stewart … he stood by passively while this has happened,” he said.

KAP leader Robbie Katter, who is the State MP for Traeger. He has angrily pushed for legislation which would challenge Glencore’s claims that its Mount Isa Mines copper operations were no longer commercially viable. Picture: Nigel Hallett

His father, Federal MP Bob Katter, angrily denounced incentivising Glencore to continue mining, and said Townsville would be affected by Glencore’s decision even though he could not offer definite numbers of fly in fly out workers.

“I know the jobs are not in Mount Isa,” Mr Katter said.

“Everybody knows how many jobs there are, or were, so that’s how I figured out that most of the jobs are in Townsville.

The Mount Isa Mines copper smelter is among two in Australia. Picture: Scott Radford-Chisholm

“The overwhelming bulk of FIFOs are out of town … just stand at the airport and have a look at the people getting on the aeroplanes, those that are wearing blue steel boots.”

But Mr Katter’s concerns were compounded by a foreign takeover bid for Townsville’s Sun Metals Zinc Refinery which exposed nearly another 1000 jobs.

Glencore claims its North Queensland operations directly contributed $2.6bn to the economy last year, providing 4350 jobs while spending $1.8bn on goods and services from almost 2000 regional businesses.

A spokesman for the company said while its operations in Mount Isa and Townsville was an important part of its business, about 10 per cent of the impacted copper workforce lived outside Mount Isa.

“We are continuing to work through a process of engagement with each worker that involves discussion around retention, redeployment and retraining,” he said.

Incitec Pivot’s acid plant close to Mount Isa Mines’ copper smelter. Picture: Scott Radford-Chisholm

“We will continue to operate a very large business in Mount Isa, including our George Fisher zinc and lead mine and our copper and lead smelters, as well as our copper refinery and port operations in Townsville.

“We’re committed to safe and responsible operations in North Queensland that continue to bring benefits for our workforce, for the local communities and for many businesses in the region.

“We’re continuing to invest in our Mount Isa assets, including further exploration work planned for this year, and have committed $47 million on pre-feasibility studies into extending the Black Star Open Cut zinc mine.

“We are also continuing to investigate future ore tolling options for the copper concentrator.”

Mount Isa Mayor Peta MacRae said economic impacts on Townsville would not just directly be Fly In, Fly Out jobs, but also potentially through investment properties that affected Mount Isa residents would own.

Mount Isa Mayor Peta MacRae said the job losses in her city would have flow-on effects to Townsville.

She warned there was further risk of regional job losses if Glencore decided to close the Mount Isa Mines copper smelter, which would feed on other miners’ ore when its mines closed.

It was an asset of strategic importance with the only other copper smelter in the country at Olympic Dam, South Australia, and provided vital sulfuric acid supply for Incitec Pivot’s acid plant, and linking further with the rail line and the Port of Townsville.

“I don’t think people in coastal areas, particularly Townsville, have realised what an impact that that could potentially have on their community,” Ms MacRae said.

Originally published as Mining company’s knock-on risk risks being passed onto Townsville