Richard debated Stephen Galilee, the head of the NSW Minerals Council on 7.30 NSW regarding their recent attack on our research into mining subsidies. This material sheds light both on our approach to our research and the disingenuous approach taken by the NSW Minerals Council.

The Australian Institute says the Minerals Council members – the large, mostly foreign-owned, mining companies – should explain the attacks on The Australia Institute. The Minerals Council has claimed that The Australia Institute is being directed by a political party. This is untrue and defamatory. The Minerals Council should immediately desist from making such claims

If you’d like to give a presentation on the economics of mining, get in touch with us and we can give you the background information you need.

Gas fields covering NSW farmland and forests are approved largely on the basis of the claims they make about jobs and economic benefits. The gas industry employs some people and generates economic activity, but often not to extent claimed by industry advocates. This fact sheet will assist with arguing against the industry’s shonky economics.

Coal mines on NSW farmland and forests are approved largely on the basis of the claims they make about jobs and economic benefits. Coal mines certainly employ some peopleand generate economic activity, but often not to extent claimed by industry advocates. This fact sheet will assist with arguing against the industry’s shonky economics.

Last week was another big week for The Australia Institute. You might have seen that we launched another major research report, Mining the Age of Entitlement, this time on the $17.6 billion worth of  taxpayer support that State governments have given the mining industry. You might have seen Ben Oquist’s name mentioned in relation to

Age of entitlement lives on: Report exposes billions in government handouts to mining State governments are providing billions of dollars in subsidies to the minerals and fossil fuel industries, a new report by The Australia Institute (TAI) has revealed. The report exposes the massive scale of state government assistance, totalling $17.6 billion over a six-year

A strong majority (83%) of Hunter Valley residents do not want to see the coal industry expand, while 41 per cent would like to see it decrease or be phased out, a new research paper by The Australia Institute finds.  Seeing through the dust: Coal in the Hunter Valley economy will be launched at 10.30am,

MAKE no mistake, if a gas field is approved over the Surf Coast Shire it will industrialise the region. The economics of unconventional gas are pretty simple; once approval for a commercial gas field is granted, the company needs to extract as much gas as possible to maximise its return on investment. That typically means

To paraphrase Winston Churchill — never in the field of budget conflict has so much been extracted by so few at the expense of so many. While the rest of us face a horror budget where we are told to keep calm and carry on, the miners are walking away puffing a cigar and doing the

Today’s Supreme Court judgement reinforces the view that the economics of Rio Tinto’s Warkworth project have never stacked up for NSW or the people of Bulga, according to The Australia Institute.   Two economists from The Australia Institute, Dr Richard Denniss and Rod Campbell, gave evidence in Bulga’s successful Land and Environment Court case against the

Grow your own: the potential value and impacts of residential and community gardening will be launched today at 10.30am by Gardening Australia’s Costa Georgiadis at the Wayside Chapel in Sydney. The Australia Institute paper, by Poppy Wise, reveals two out of three households support more locally produced food via community gardens, school gardens, and in

One in two Australians want more regulation of coal seam gas, while 71 per cent think the federal government should be responsible for regulating the industry rather than individual states, according to new research by The Australia Institute.  Fracking the future: Busting industry myths about coal seam gas will be launched today by former Independent

Tony Abbott recently described the people who take the chainsaws to Tasmania’s native forests as ”the ultimate conservationists”.Seriously. In his speech to the 2014 Forestworks Dinner, the Prime Minister claimed that because the loggers’ future income depends on the availability of trees, they – and not the derided greenies – are the true custodians of

The economy has become a symbol for politicians to exploit rather than a system for them to manage. Prime Minister Tony Abbott’s recent speech about Tasmania highlights that talking about the economy is something politicians like to do, but making good economic decisions has become an optional extra. While Mr Abbott claims that no government

The NSW Department of Planning and Infrastructure has censored parts of The Australia Institute’s submission on the Terminal 4 coal project. The Institute’s submission focuses on the economic assessment of the project and highlights a number of flaws in the economic modelling. Almost a page of text showing the relationship between an “independent” reviewer of

Investments in coal, oil, and gas increase financial risk without increasing returns, according to the new report Climate proofing your investments: Moving funds out of fossil fuels published by The Australia Institute. To meet the internationally-agreed two degree global warming limit, fossil fuel businesses must leave in the ground two-thirds of the reserves currently on

Santos has been salivating at the prospect of selling gas for two to three times the domestic price for years. But as the big pay day draws near, the company has started blaming protesters, who oppose the harm that gas exploration does to farms and forests, for the impending price rises; the same price rises

The New Acland coal mine is applying to expand its operations in one of Australia’s most productive agricultural regions, the Darling Downs.  The mine has been controversial since it began, in its impact on the agricultural economy, and in clearing out the town of Acland where now only one resident remains.  The New Acland Mine

Despite the Abbott government carrying out their commitment to slash tens of thousands of public-sector jobs and the pride taken in the deterrence effect of the death of an asylum seeker on Manus Island, our deputy prime minister in waiting, Barnaby Joyce, describes $300 million from taxpayers to his constituency as proof that we are

The North Galilee Basin Rail project is not in the best economic or environmental interests of Queensland and should not be approved according to The Australia Institute’s submission to the Queensland Government today. It is inexcusable that a cost-benefit analysis has not been demanded by the Newman government before looking to approve the 300 kilometre

If you haven’t heard about the growing campaign for fossil fuel divestment, and what it means for both your retirement funds and for the global economy, it’s time to pay attention – because now even the World Bank is on board. At the recent World Economic Forum in Davos, World Bank President Jim Yong Kim called for

In the old Chinese proverb, the frog in the well thinks he knows everything about the world, based on the little patch of sky he can see. The view from the bottom of an open-cut coalmine might be a little wider than that of a well, but NSW Minerals Council chief executive  Stephen Galilee’s discussion of the role

Chinese mining company Shenhua has quite a battle on its hands.  It has loudly and proudly promised employment, investment, and royalties for the Gunnedah region, if its Watermark coal project goes ahead, but locals are publicly calling “foul” on Shenhua’s claims. Residents have managed to stuff the NSW government’s letterbox full of appeals against the

Bundaberg is experiencing a flurry of exploratory drilling for coal deposits. The local mining sector is buzzing, and its investors are trumpeting the region as Queensland’s newest coal centre.  They promise jobs, money, and a shiny white rabbit from under their hard hat! The Bundaberg community isn’t convinced.  They fear the coal mine expansion will

Mining industry lobby group the NSW Minerals Council this week released yet another report on mining’s importance to the NSW and regional economies.  Not surprisingly, the report contains lots of big numbers.   But this report, like many before it, is a case of ‘‘what’s true isn’t surprising and what’s surprising isn’t true’’. Let’s start

The economic benefits of a major Queensland coal project in the Darling Downs were exaggerated and the negative impacts underplayed, according to an analysis by The Australia Institute. There are currently 28 proposed mining projects in Queensland and the state government has committed to doubling coal production and exports by 2030. One of the projects

Health and climate impacts suggest unconventional gas is not the best option for Australia’s energy future, according to research released today. The research paper Is fracking good for your health? is co-published by The Australia Institute and The Social Justice Initiative. It examines existing research to analyse the impacts of unconventional gas – coal seam gas (CSG),

The newly released report from the Victorian government’s Gas Taskforce is not surprising, given a recent article by its chair, writes Matt Grudnoff.

Peter Reith, Paul Howes and Innes Willox think lifting the ban on fracking in Victoria will stop gas prices from rising. Sorry guys, but you’re wrong. To think that more gas is going to stop the price going up misunderstands why the gas price is rising.