A VIBRANT WA mining services sector has created a deepening and widening in the WA economy, particularly in regional regions, according to a report from the Committee for Economic Development of Australia.
Yet these activities may be under threat if ‘economic centralism’ drains the inland countryside of population, The Importance of Mining Services to the WA Economy suggests.
Kalgoorlie, for example, has developed niche areas such as drilling, business conference provision and assay laboratories which could be lost through economic policies, the report claims.
Report author Professor Philip Maxwell said there was validity in the claim that Perth, by providing essential mining services, was the Silicon Valley of the industry.
The report also warns that the downturn of the business cycle has not yet run its full course.
In its later stages, competitive mining service providers will continue to face difficult challenges as they seek to maintain their economic viability and competitiveness, it says.
