AIMEX 2025 has opened in Adelaide with South Australian Treasurer and Mines Minister Tom Koutsantonis has outlined the case for the state to grow its position as a mineral resources powerhouse.
In his opening remarks, the Minister said South Australia is “a state on the move” and that mining is “now a pillar of the South Australian economy”.
“Over the next three days, I think delegates will see what is possible here in South Australia, whether it’s innovation and data, automation and technology, where it means pioneering working productivity, safety and sustainability,” he said.
Koutsantonis said the mining industry’s investment in leadership and growing the mining supply chain is helping grow Australia’s prosperity.
He said, however, that the positive impact of the mining industry on the Australian economy was “not quite grasped” by the broader Australian public.
“Up to two thirds of Australia’s goods that were exported, $369 billion, are from the mining industry,” he said.
“Australia has scale. We’re linked to global supply chains and the opportunity for big miners and startups to work together is better here in Australia than it was any other jurisdiction in the world.”
Speaking about mining exports for South Australia, Koutsantonis said the past financial year was a record for the state. He highlighted the importance of copper to the state’s economy and as a growth engine for the mining industry.
“There was an increase in reported energy and mining goods exports to around $7 billion,” he said. “South Australia’s largest exported commodity is copper, both refined and concentrates. That was up 17 per cent on the previous year, which reaped for our state, a record of $4.3 billion in copper exports.”
He said that private mining capital expenditure in the state grew by nearly $3 billion in one year, and that the five-year average of nearly $3 billion a year was indicative of mining capital expenditure remaining strong across time for the state.
“Mining contributed about 30 per cent of South Australian private capital investment for the last financial year, and the mineral petroleum sectors are essential to South Australia’s ongoing growth and that of [the state’s] economic prosperity.
“Our state comprises about six to seven per cent of the country’s economic output, but mining is becoming one of the largest sectors within South Australia, and hopefully over the next decade, we’ll see that dramatically increase.”
Koutsantonis also spoke about the crucial role mining will play in decarbonisation and the transition to renewable energy.
“The world is changing dramatically, and we are seeing the shift towards decarbonisation, and that decarbonisation does not require less mining – it requires more mining,” he said.
“It will mean that this industry will do the heavy lifting, that this industry is the tip of the spear, so to speak, with a decarbonisation agenda globally, and at the forefront of that decarbonisation is the commodity of copper.”
Koutsantonis also mentioned the breadth of ingenuity on display among exhibitors at AIMEX. He said technology would play an important role in transforming mining’s raw materials into products that will power the world over the next decades.
He ended his remarks with a nod to AIMEX and its partnership with the state government to host the event in Adelaide for the next 10 years.
“Congratulations to the organisers. I look forward to coming here over and over again.” he said.
With over 5000 visitors expected at the Adelaide Showground, AIMEX will showcase insights from an impressive speaker lineup and display the very best in innovation and future ideas.
AIMEX 2025 kicks off today in Adelaide. Register here.
