BHP boss Mauro Neves calls on suppliers to support anti coal royalties campaign

In a sign the rhetorical war on the state government’s new coal royalties will bleed into 2023, BHP’s Queensland boss finished 2022 with an open letter trashing the new regime and calling on suppliers to join a campaign against them.

In an unprecedented move, BHP’s top man in Queensland has penned an open letter to the mining giant’s suppliers inviting them to join a campaign opposing the state government’s new coal royalties.

BHP asset president Mauro Neves claimed the new regime introduced by Treasurer Cameron Dick in June 2022 would drive jobs and investment out of the state and argued suppliers would feel the hit.

“If Queensland isn’t able to be competitive domestically and globally, the investment, jobs and community benefits that come from doing business in Queensland will end up going elsewhere,” he writes.

“As one of the industry’s and BMA’s supply partners, you and your people play an important role in keeping Queensland’s economy strong.”

The company boasts an outsized presence in Queensland’s resources industry, delivering $6.8bn in payments to suppliers across the 2022 financial year.

BHP Mitsubishi Alliance asset president Mauro Neves

Mr Neves’ letter includes a link and QR code to the Queensland Resources Council’s Keep Queensland Competitive website, set up to campaign against the new royalty structure and build a network for those opposed to the new order.

“By visiting (the website) you can contribute to playing a part in future proofing jobs and businesses in Queensland now and into the future,” Mr Neves writes.

The letter is the latest jab at the government from the behemoth coal miner, which has stated bluntly it will roll back investment into Central Queensland in response to the money grab.

Queensland Treasurer Cameron Dick delivers the state’s 2022-23 budget update on December 7. Picture: Dan Peled

The new regime adds three tiers to the existing tiered structure, with companies now paying 20 per cent on the dollar when coal prices exceed $175 per tonne, 30 per cent on the dollar when prices climb beyond $225 per tonne and 40 per cent when they exceed $300.

This means Queensland’s coal firms now pay the highest top rate of tax in the world.

The royalties have flooded money into the government’s coffers on the back of a historic run-up in coal prices, with December’s budget update revealing an additional $2.95bn in revenue drawn from the new tiers, far above the initial $765m projection.

Mr Dick has said he will redeploy the earnings back into regional Queensland through a new $3bn consolidated fund.