Supply Chain With Strength

Queensland - and Australia - is one of the few places in the world with an end-to-end aluminium supply chain, from bauxite mining and alumina refining to smelting and fabrication. Aluminium smelting, and metals processing more broadly, thrive in the Sunshine State. Aluminium produces $8 billion in annual export revenue for Queensland and sustains 8000 jobs for employees and contractors.

We still use it for everything from extruded products in building and construction to clean energy infrastructure. The strengths that already reside in local aluminium production mean that we should look ahead to the sector’s challenges with clear purpose. High energy costs driven by global events have put pressure on the balance sheets of big smelting facilities.

High energy costs driven by global events have put pressure on the balance sheets of big smelting facilities.
Global overcapacity, trade uncertainty and subsidies in other markets have also put extraordinary pressure on aluminium producers alongside other metals processors.
Queensland has abundant capacity for renewable power generation, rich resource endowments and highly capable workers spread out across the state.

This is Australia’s future industrial competitive advantage. Australia must preserve and enhance its aluminium supply chains so that we’re stronger and more resilient in the face of growing economic and strategic uncertainty in our region and around the world. Confronting these challenges means pressing on with cheaper, more reliable sources of renewable energy in the large volumes metal producers need.

As ageing coal-fired power stations across the country announce their closure, and with the cost of coal-fired energy increasing 13 per cent in this financial year alone, facilities like the Boyne Island aluminium smelter are switching to renewables to stay competitive.

Boyne makes up about 10 per cent of Queensland’s energy demand. Its adoption of renewable energy and low emissions technologies means cheaper power, good jobs for blue collar workers and a more resilient aluminium sector for Queensland.

The Albanese Labor Government backs this shift toward cheaper, cleaner energy for Queensland because we know local industry depends on it.

The Albanese Government’s $2 billion Green Aluminium Production Credit will provide smelters with the confidence to invest in renewable energy generation and storage projects, alongside innovative decarbonisation technologies, that make aluminium cheaper and cleaner to produce.

In Gladstone, Rio Tinto has signed some of the biggest power purchase agreements, with Windlab and Edify Energy, for electricity generated by solar and wind, and stored by battery.

The National Reconstruction Fund has also just announced a $75 million investment in Alpha HPA to support the completion of its High Purity Alumina (HPA) production facility in Gladstone - which will be the world’s largest and bring 420 construction jobs and 80 ongoing jobs to the region.

This government will step in and stand up for Australian workers and economic self-reliance.
Last October I travelled back to Mount Isa and Townsville to announce a $600 million joint support package with the Queensland Government to help Glencore’s smelting and refining facilities weather some of these storms and deliver a credible plan for the industrial future of North Queensland.

A stronger and more resilient industrial future for Queensland depends on securing large amounts of cheap, low-carbon electricity, and first-of-a-kind low-emissions manufacturing technologies. That’s what will support good jobs, decent living standards and national economic strength for years to come.

Senator Tim Ayres is the Minister for Industry and Innovation and Minister for Science.

This article was originally published in the Gladstone Today on Thursday 12 February 2026.