00:00 Industry heavyweights joining forces, petitioning both levels of government for help.
00:06 Their selling point?
00:07 The environment.
00:08 We know both nickel and lithium will be essential to the global ambition to reach net zero emissions.
00:16 Once an investment darling due to their critical role in battery manufacturing, lithium and
00:20 nickel have seen prices plummet over 2023.
00:24 It's hit local investors, like mining magnate Andrew Forrest, hard.
00:29 Just six months ago, his firm Wailu Metals spent $760 million buying up ASX-listed MinCorp.
00:37 This week, announcing he would mothball two of their nickel mines, shedding hundreds of
00:41 jobs.
00:42 Demand for Australia's high-purity nickel and lithium, key components in electric car
00:46 batteries, has remained strong, but prices have been driven down by global oversupply.
00:52 The price of lithium fell by 80% in the past year, while nickel prices dropped by more
00:57 than 40%.
00:59 Australia's asked for deferral of royalty payments until prices improve, but conceded
01:03 that can't last forever.
01:05 There has to be an end point on a deferral.
01:08 Long term, the WA government may go further.
01:10 We need to make sure the industry remains strong.
01:14 So I've committed to working with them to see what a royalty reform may look like.
01:18 It's been seven years since the WA government tried to change royalty rates.
01:22 Its last attempt was a disaster, with gold miners uniting to fight off a bid to charge
01:26 them more per tonne.
01:29 Right now, nickel miners pay the lowest rate available, 2.5%.
01:34 The nickel industry says it does deserve special treatment.
01:37 We've got to remain globally competitive.
01:39 And for the critical minerals or strategic minerals, that's very different from the
01:44 iron ore business, the coal, the gas business.
01:46 But if royalty rules are changed for one player, there may be nothing to stop miners of other
01:50 commodities coming to the government cap in hand in future.
01:54 [BLANK_AUDIO]
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