Perth
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Good morning Ladies and Gentlemen.
I am very pleased to have the opportunity to address this year's AusIMM International Uranium Conference.
Now in its sixth year this conference provides a valuable opportunity for stakeholders to come together and take stock of where the industry is at as well as examining future directions.
And I think it is the future that is very much on everyone's minds.
I know Michael spoke to you yesterday about the events at Fukushima and their potential impacts on your industry and I would just like to add a few comments from the Government's perspective.
Public perception and social licence
Access to secure and reliable energy is the foundation of all modern economies.
Nuclear power currently supplies around 14 per cent of the world’s electricity.
For countries with limited energy options, it is an important part of the energy mix - increasingly so as efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions accelerate.
But questions of safety continue to confront the industry, most recently in the aftermath of the Japanese earthquake and tsunami.
These events raise real questions that should, and are, being examined.
Australia is participating in this international process.
We support all measures to further improve safety and will actively contribute our proposals to make this happen, including through the IAEA Ministerial Conference in June, and the UN Summit to be held in New York in September.
It is only through redoubling our efforts that confidence will be restored. This is a challenge I believe the industry will meet.
But I would also make the point that nuclear power is not alone in having to meet increased standards and heightened public expectations.
Across all energy sources, whether it be coal mining or offshore petroleum, industry will always be held to account when it comes to the question of safety for both workers and the environment.
At the same time, calls to shutdown an industry, whether it be in mining, oil and gas or nuclear, fail to take account of the universal capacity to learn and develop from experience. They rob industry of the opportunity to implement and achieve improvements.
In the context of the nuclear industry they also fail to address the requirement for energy security.
Nuclear has always faced a tougher challenge than other energy sources, particularly when it comes to public perception and maintaining society's confidence to operate.
But I do not believe this challenge is insurmountable.
Fukushima has lead to a reassessment of nuclear power plans by all countries. Some like Germany have decided on a path of decommissioning but the evidence so far is that most will continue with their plans, albeit with some re-engineering.
Fukushima will lead to increased safety standards for nuclear power plants.
What Fukushima will not do is change the fundamental drivers – increasing population and increasing demand for energy – behind the desire by some nations for more nuclear power.
Accordingly, demand for uranium to fuel those reactors will continue.
Let's not forget that there are over 400 reactors worldwide and while some of these have been shutdown in recent months the vast majority continue to operate.
I know work is being done to model projected impacts on rate of growth and overall demand and I look forward to reviewing this data.
Over the longer term though I am confident the recent expansion we have seen in uranium mining, driven by increased global demand, will continue.
Australia will be central to that growth.
Australian uranium
We have been a reliable supplier of uranium since the 1950s, have the world’s largest Reasonably Assured Resources and are currently the third largest producer.
In recent years we have seen a real expansion of the industry and ramping up of production which is set to continue with a number of new mines preparing to commence production.
Much of this activity is happening right here in Western Australia and it is great to see this year's conference held for the first time in Perth.
With an estimated 69,000 tonnes of low-cost recoverable uranium oxide, Western Australia's recoverable uranium resources are valued at just under $9 billion.
New opportunities in the Northern Territory and South Australia are also on the horizon.
A final investment decision on the potential expansion of Olympic Dam expected early next year could see it become the world's biggest mine.
The opening up of the Woomera Prohibited Area through the implementation of a new framework I announced with Defence Minister Stephen Smith earlier this year gives industry the certainty it needs to invest in this highly prospective area.
Geoscience Australia estimates three-quarters of our known uranium resources are in this area.
Looking to demand there are also potential new opportunities on the horizon.
The Australian Government is commencing discussion with the United Arab Emirates on a bilateral nuclear safeguards agreement that could potentially open up a new market for Australia's uranium.
Exploration, the key to increased future production, is also on the rise.
ABARES expects spending on uranium exploration to rise by more than one-third this financial year.
AusIMM's membership will be central to realising these expectations.
You are the ones that develop and apply modern technology for exploration.
And your contribution to the intellectual pool that keeps Australia at the forefront of technological developments is invaluable.
This expertise and technological advancements are a very important component of substantial Australian content in any resource project.
Supporting growth
Government is lending its support to facilitate exploration through the work of Geoscience Australia.
I will shortly be releasing Toward Future Energy Discovery – the culmination of five years work by GA in offshore and onshore data acquisition and regional studies to encourage further exploration.
Part of this work, the National Geochemical Survey of Australia, the first of its kind, is particularly relevant to this industry.
I hope you found yesterday afternoon’s presentation outlining its key features beneficial.
I note that education, skills and training also features on your conference agenda.
When you take a look at the figures, nearly 7,000 tonnes of uranium was exported last year, and it is predicted that there will be a potential doubling of this amount within four years and a quadrupling within 20.
These numbers underline the fundamental importance of focussing our attention on these areas.
To sustain growth and deliver the many new projects in the pipeline you need access to labour and a skilled workforce.
That's why at the heart of our Budget this year was a focus on skills and training through the $3 billion Building Australia's Future Workforce package.
Together with an increase in skilled migration and the introduction of Enterprise Migration Agreement for our largest resources projects – a first for Australia – the Government will help you access the workforce you need to grow.
And the health and safety of that workforce will always be our first priority.
It features heavily on your program for this conference and I welcome your focus on this most fundamental aspect of any mining operation.
On that note can I say that I am pleased to take the opportunity with you here today to officially launch the Australian National Dose Register.
Australian National Dose Register
For the first time, a new central database will track the dose histories of employees in the uranium mining and milling industries across Australia.
Workers will now have greater confidence that the best and most complete data is being maintained to ensure their good health into the future.
The register is funded by my Department and managed under contract by the Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency, or ARPANSA.
It is a significant improvement on the existing reporting scheme.
For example, when a worker currently moves from one site to another, the worker’s dose histories often don't go with them.
That's often the case if the new site is in another state.
Under the new scheme, data on radiation doses will be sent to the central register.
Workers can then obtain their personal dose records collected over their working life.
The data will also be used to assess radiological doses within worker categories.
It will improve the capacity of industry to monitor radiation exposure, for example by showing industry trends and comparisons.
The register has been open for dose records from mining companies since 2010 and records are protected by privacy legislation.
The new service is provided free by the Australian Government, giving some 6,000 workers better protection. It has always been our intention to include records for workers in every State and Territory - including the Northern Territory - on the national register.
We have been working with the NT Government for over 12 months now to ensure any obstacles to their full participation in the scheme are resolved at the earliest opportunity.
World-class regulation
The national dose register is integral to ensuring we have a world class regulatory regime in place for uranium mining.
This includes strict export controls to only those countries that observe the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, have an Additional Protocol with the International Atomic Energy Agency and a bilateral safeguards agreement with Australia.
It includes fostering a culture in industry to share compliance techniques and collectively strive for continuous improvement.
And it means the highest standards of environmental protection and adherence to proper guidelines and approvals from the Australian Safeguards and Non-Proliferation Office for the production, handling, storage and transport of uranium.
Together these elements will ensure that our industry operates effectively and engenders public confidence in its activities.
Conclusion
Ladies and gentlemen, the Australian Government supports the expansion of the Australian uranium industry.
There is plenty of growth and plenty of demand in this key industry for Australia.
Once again, thank you for the opportunity to address this conference, it is something I have wanted to do since becoming Minister and am pleased to have had this ambition fulfilled today.
I wish you the very best for the remainder of your activities and look forward to seeing you again next year.
Thank you.