17 August 2022

Statement on changes to Queensland coal royalty regime

Whitehaven Coal wishes to clarify it does not support changes the Queensland Government has made to increase coal mining royalties.

On 18 July 2022, in response to questions on a teleconference with equity analysts for Whitehaven’s June 2022 Quarter Production Report, Managing Director and CEO, Paul Flynn said about the royalty increase:

It’s hard to speak too nicely about that, what’s gone on in Queensland. I think that’s very negative one way or the other [and] the lack of consultation and just the dramatic nature of it; it’s clearly not a royalty, it’s a tax. So, look, we hope certainly there’s no change to the position in New South Wales and we’ll be making sure that the New South Wales Government leading up to the election in March next year understands the critical role that the resources sector plays in New South Wales and the need for further investment requires certainty in that regard. So, the unpredictable nature of things such as [what has] occurred in Queensland, don’t really foster the confidence necessary to commit billions of dollars in capital to the likes of projects that this industry typically spends.

Whitehaven is one of a number of companies and other stakeholders that have spoken out publicly against the royalty increase which the company believes undermines Queensland’s reputation as an investment destination.

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