Minerals industry continues to contribute record company tax and royalty payments

The Australian minerals industry made record company tax and royalty payments in 2021-22, contributing $63 billion to federal, state and territory governments, an increase of $21 billion on the previous year.

That total contribution is the equivalent of paying for the entire Medicare scheme or the Childcare subsidy for two years.

Minerals have helped propel our economy forward, boosted economic opportunity and freedom, and enabled the governments to invest in the things that really matter: families, communities and vital services like hospitals, schools, childcare, aged care and infrastructure.

Australia does well when Australian minerals do well.

The latest Ernst & Young* Royalty and Company Tax payments report, commissioned by the MCA and released today, shows that in 2021-22 the sector contributed $39 billion in company tax (a third of all company tax paid in Australia) and $24 billion in royalties.

The minerals industry is clearly paying its fair share of tax.

Over the 10 years to 2021-22, Australian minerals have contributed 21 percent of Australia’s GDP growth, $295 billion in company tax ($168 billion) and in royalties ($127 billion) underpinning Australian government revenue year in, year out.

The record tax and royalty payments come off the back of $389 billion of capital investments the industry made since the start of the mining boom.

Australia’s vulnerability to competition for this investment from resources-rich economies which will only grow as they seek to seize the opportunity to supply the minerals and metals needed to achieve global net zero emissions.

Investment should be placed at the centre of government’s policymaking to attract a significant proportion of this investment that will create tens of thousands of new regional jobs and business growth.

Workplace relations, tax, environment, climate change and energy policies that impose unexpected costs on the mining industry threaten the capital investment that underpins its contribution to the economy and the global efforts to decarbonise.

In conjunction with the release of the EY Report, the MCA have initiated a new series of digital advertisements that highlight the benefits of the financial contribution from the minerals industry to the Australian community.

The advertisements will be expanded in the coming months to help illustrate that Australia does well when the Australian minerals industry do well.

*EY was engaged in relation to the calculation of actual royalty and company tax payments attributable to the minerals sector in 2021-22.