About the Industry

Minerals are central to our modern way of life. They are essential to producing raw materials for construction and manufacturing. Electricity generated from coal enables us to build our houses and heat, cool and light them; prepare and preserve food; have fresh drinking water; run our offices and businesses; and fabricate and use our toys. Plasma TVs, mobiles, stereos, ipods, PCs all need electricity to run and are composed of steel, alloys, copper, lead, zinc, platinum and iron ore. The list is endless. 

NSW has an abundance of mineral resources. Along with coal, NSW has resources of metallic minerals like gold, copper, silver, lead and zinc, and industrial minerals like mineral sands, clays, limestone and silica. Precious gems that have been mined in NSW include opals, sapphires, rubies and diamonds.

The NSW minerals industry:

• Contributes more than $2 billion annually in taxes and royalties which is used by the government to provide many essential services 
  
  

• Generates about 310,000 direct and indirect jobs in NSW 
  
  
• Is committed to a 60% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050
  
  
• Is actively tackling climate change through a $1 billion voluntary national industry fund to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions from burning coal
  
  
• Provides just under 90% of the State’s entire energy needs from coal
  
  
• Coal, coke and briquettes are NSW’s biggest  merchandise export earner, valued at $11 billion in 2010-11
  
  
• NSW accounts for approximately 40% of Australia’s total coal exports
  
  
• Asia continued to be the major market destination for NSW coal in 2010-11
  
  
• NSW has 42% of Australia’s black coal economic demonstrated reserves
  
  
• The value of NSW mineral production for 2010-11 was an estimated $20 billion.

Key Industry Statistics

Click on the image above for a copy of NSWMC's Key Industry Statistics 2011

Relevant Links

In September 2010 the NSW Government released a plan to grow the NSW economy, the NSW Business Sector Growth Plan.

For the chapter on mining please click here.

For the complete publication please click here.

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