ABOUT THE REGION

Western Australia’s mid-west region is possibly one of the most diverse mineral provinces in Australia. It supports oil, gas, gold and iron ore mining operations. The mid-west is also known for agriculture, fishing, tourism and manufacturing.

One of the most exciting new growth areas to emerge in the mid-west is iron ore mining. The region is blessed with high quality iron ore deposits, which have the potential to deliver economic wealth – and associated social benefits – for decades to come.

Until recently, mid-west iron ore resources remained relatively undeveloped, due to massive iron ore reserves discovered further north in Western Australia’s Pilbara. However, recent strong economic growth in China has created an unprecedented demand for iron ore and benchmark negotiated prices have more than doubled. The mid-west is ideally situated to export to Asia.

Many iron ore mining companies are now established across the mid-west, including Crosslands, and the rewards from our operations are starting to flow through to local communities. It is estimated iron ore mining contributes to an extra $2 billion a year being spent locally. This in turn encourages business and industry development and investment, and is likely to result in improved spending on services and infrastructure such as roads, railways, air services and health, education and community facilities.

Already, we have started seeing increased spending on education, training and employment programs, including for indigenous communities. A successful iron ore industry creates thousands of jobs – not only in the mining and transport sectors, but across the entire region. All of this encourages more young people, and others, to stay in the mid-west, bolstering a sense of community.

Crosslands plans a major increase in iron ore production, but even our small scale beginnings at Jack Hills have delivered local community benefits – for example, the $40 million upgrade to the Cue to Beringarra Road to bitumen. It’s expected this community asset will be handed over to the Shires of Cue and Murchison once rail is used to transport our ore.

We have also helped establish a community fund to support the operation of the Murchison Settlement Community Roadhouse, to complete upgrades to the Murchison Cemetery and to run a "youth room" at the Murchison Settlement.

We’re also investing in employment and training programs, like Indigenous Work Ready which aims to source an increasing number of workers from mid-west communities. Already, over 330 people are directly and indirectly employed at Crosslands and we aim to increase our workforce in the long term.

On top of our individual contributions, Crosslands and other mid-west mining companies have joined the Geraldton Iron Ore Alliance, which aims to deliver more social and economic benefits locally. The Alliance is dedicated to promoting a viable and successful mid-west iron ore industry. It also seeks to build community and local government partnerships that create opportunities for regional development and youth.

The Alliance recently pledged $100 000 over five years to establish and maintain the "Youth N Motion" Community Youth Bus. The idea of the bus is to foster a link with young people, providing information on topics such as employment and health, and community members say it’s already proving successful in attracting young people to take part in social activities.

All mining companies that are members of the Geraldton Iron Ore Alliance are exploring, developing and expanding iron ore projects in the mid-west region. Collectively, we have the capacity to turn the mid-west into the country’s next big iron ore province, and we are confident this will deliver substantial rewards to all local communities – both large and small.