Western Australia’s surging gold sector injected $20.5 billion into the national economy last year while supporting more than 111,000 jobs and 6300 local businesses across the country.
The spend includes wages to direct employees ($2.5 billion), payments made to contractors, community groups and local governments ($15.5 billion) and taxes and royalties to the WA and Federal governments ($2.5 billion).
The figures are the result of gold sector-specific analysis of the Chamber of Minerals and Energy WA’s (CME) 2024-25 economic contribution survey.
Nearly 150 years since gold was first discovered in WA, CME Chief Executive Officer Aaron Morey said the precious metal remained a crucial contributor to the State’s economy.
“Gold is WA’s second most valuable mineral commodity behind iron ore and has been a reliable source of jobs, taxes and royalties for generations of Australians,” Mr Morey said.
“It has also played a critical role in the development of Western Australia. The State we know today would have been unimaginable without the 1890s gold rush that unlocked a flood of investment in major infrastructure including Fremantle Harbour and the Kalgoorlie water pipeline.
“While Goldfields-Esperance no longer rivals Perth for total population, the region continues to play an enormous economic role for both the State and the nation.
“Globally, gold provides a vital source of financial stability during periods of volatility like we are experiencing currently.
“The sector has also made significant technological advances in areas like autonomous operations and subsurface sensing and imaging that have applications that extend well beyond mining, including in space exploration and defence.”
The WA gold sector paid around $885 million to the WA Government in royalties, payroll taxes and other fees in FY25 – the equivalent of $2.4 million a day.
“The gold sector’s contribution to the WA Government last year was more than enough to cover the entire budgeted cost of upgrades to the Goldfields water pipeline ($543 million),” Mr Morey said.
“It’s also enough to pay for every single one of the 13 new schools and two new high schools (total cost $688.3 million) the WA Government included in last year’s budget.”
In addition, the gold sector also contributed nearly $1.7 billion in taxes and payments to the Federal Government in FY25 – the equivalent of $4.6 million a day.
“That’s almost enough to pay for the $150 energy bill credit the Commonwealth provided to every Australian home and small business last year ($1.8 billion),” Mr Morey said.
“In less than five months, it was enough to fund the entire 50-location expansion of the Medicare Urgent Care Clinic network ($633 million).”
Goldfields-Esperance is by far WA’s biggest gold-producing region, accounting for around 70 per cent of production.
An historic run for gold prices – which were around $US4800/oz in April compared to $US1300/oz prior to the COVID pandemic in early 2020 – has contributed to significant growth in both employment and taxes and royalties.
The number of West Australians working in the gold industry has doubled in the past decade to more than 33,000 FTE.
Gold royalties paid to the WA Government totalled $519 million in FY24 before reaching $725 million in FY25. Gold royalties are forecast to exceed $1 billion in FY26.
Media contacts:
Josh Zimmerman j.zimmerman@cmewa.com / 0404 947 719
Natasha Mutch n.mutch@cmewa.com / 0435 383 382