WA's iron ore industry will be highlighted at Berlin symposium

24/4/97

Western Australia's multi-billion dollar iron ore industry will be a centre of attention at this year's prestigious Metal Bulletin International Iron Ore Symposium being held in Berlin next week.

Resources Development Minister Colin Barnett will present the State's iron ore industry to a range of well-respected leaders from integrated steel mills, iron ore-producing companies and those associated with downstream processing facilities.

Mr Barnett will be a keynote Metal Bulletin conference speaker and while overseas will also meet with a number of companies to discuss their interest in developing a $1.5 billion world-scale petrochemical plant. He will visit Berlin, Paris and London over eight days.

"Western Australia's iron ore industry has established a global reputation for reliability and quality of supply and is recognised as one of the most efficient in the world," the Minister said.

"Our industry accounts for 14 per cent of world iron ore production and significantly, for the third successive year, is the world leader in exports with 34 per cent of seaborne trade.

"With the cost of energy having fallen significantly since deregulation, the potential for new investment in value adding projects is extremely promising and opens a window of opportunity for WA to become a major exporter of DRI and even steel into east Asia."

Mr Barnett said that the audience at the conference would include delegates from the European Union, Japan, the United States and Latin America as well as most European purchasers of iron ore.

"It is rare for a Government Minister to address the Metal Bulletin conference so I am very honoured to have been invited to sell our valuable industry internationally, to some of the most important iron ore representatives in the world," he said.

Mr Barnett will also meet with Krupp-UHDE and Shell International Chemicals to discuss the Government's plan to facilitate the development of a petrochemical plant in the Pilbara. Formal expressions of interest will be sought in the project soon.

"There is significant international interest in building a petrochemical plant in the Pilbara with various studies showing a plant is viable subject to the availability of sufficient competitively-priced ethane feedstock," the Minister said.

"It is the Government's intention to see a privately funded petrochemical plant in construction, if not production, by 2001."

Media contact: Justine Whittome (09) 222 9699