Queensland mining powers a quarter of the economy: project signals for engineers
Reviewed by Tom Sullivan

First reported on Australian Mining
30 Second Briefing
Queensland’s resources sector generated over $115 billion for the state economy in the last financial year, accounting for roughly one quarter of gross state product and supporting extensive coal, gas and critical minerals operations. The industry’s footprint spans Bowen Basin metallurgical coal, Surat Basin gas and emerging North West Minerals Province copper and rare earths, with associated rail and port infrastructure such as the Goonyella and Blackwater systems running near capacity. For engineers, the figures signal continued demand for mine expansions, tailings and water management upgrades, and heavy-haul transport projects across regional Queensland.
Technical Brief
- Scale of indirect employment suggests sustained pressure on regional housing, water, transport and tailings storage design in mining districts.
Our Take
Queensland features heavily in our 770 Mining stories, and this scale of resources-driven revenue typically correlates with sustained investment in enabling infrastructure such as rail, ports and power that future projects can leverage.
A contribution of A$115 billion in the last financial year suggests the Queensland resources sector is likely to retain strong political influence over land-use planning and approvals, which can shape timelines and conditions for new mining projects in the state.
With 1462 Projects-tagged pieces in our coverage, Queensland’s outsized economic dependence on mining means operators there are more exposed to policy shifts on royalties and emissions than peers in less resource-heavy Australian states.
Prepared by collating external sources, AI-assisted tools, and Geomechanics.io’s proprietary mining database, then reviewed for technical accuracy & edited by our geotechnical team.
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