Question On Notice No. 234 asked in the Legislative Assembly on 19 August 2021 by Mr P.J. Rundle
Question Directed to the: Minister for Mines and Petroleum; Energy; Corrective Services
Parliament: 41 Session: 1
Question
I refer to the five year royalty subsidy agreement granted to Mineral Resources since 2018 and I ask:
(a) What is the rate per tonne paid;
(b) Is there a cut off price for iron ore whereby royalty relief is no longer received;
(c) How much has Mineral Resources saved in royalty payments to the State since the start of the royalty relief in the following financial years:
(i) 2018-19;
(ii) 2019-20; and
(iii) 2020-21; and
(d) How much is forecast to be paid to Mineral Resources for royalty subsidies in the financial years:
(i) 2021-2022; and
(ii) 2022-2023?
Answered on 12 October 2021
(a) The royalty rebate is not based on a rate per tonne. The royalty rebate is a 100 per cent rebate of royalties paid.
(b) No.
(c) The question misunderstands the assistance. Without the assistance, the mine would have closed and all workers, including port workers resident in Esperance, would have been made redundant. If the mine had closed at that time, it may never have reopened. Therefore, the cost to budget of the assistance package for royalties was zero. Noting that, the rebate made in each year is:
(i) $11.6m
(ii) $44.7m
(iii) $94.2m
(d) (i) $47.29m
(ii) $13.97m