Josie Vidal: New Zealand Minerals Council CEO on exports increasing from $1.46 billion in 2023 to $2.5 billion this year

The Government's celebrating strong momentum in the minerals sector.  

A one-year review of the Government's Minerals Strategy shows exports have climbed from $1.46 billion in 2023 to about $2.5 billion this year. 

Gold production and employment have also grown, with more than $30 million in royalties expected this financial year. 

Minerals Council Chief Executive Josie Vidal told Mike Hosking they're optimistic, but there are still hurdles.  

She says any production industry struggles with red tape, so it's good to see this strategy try to get the mining industry up and running. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Update on the country's mineral strategy looks good. Experts have
increased from one point four to six billion. There was
in twenty twenty three to run two and a half
billion last year. The goal's three billion by twenty thirty five,
so that looks very realistic. I would have thought Gold's
up seventeen percent all by itself. Jose Bedale is the
CEO of our Minerals Council, and as with as Josie morning,
good morning, are we tracking that which consistently? Is this

(00:20):
good news?

Speaker 2 (00:22):
This is good news? And I've been saying for some time.
Let mining is a highly productive, highly paid sector of
our economy and it's bought, pays lots of taxes and
royalties to the government and contributes to regional communities where
the minds are. So it's great to see the government
getting behind these positive outcomes for New Zealand. It's good
to have some good news stories.

Speaker 1 (00:41):
Occasionally, I reckon's the getting it versus the selling it
equation at the moment, can you get it to sell it?
Or could you get more if you were allowed to?

Speaker 2 (00:53):
We could get more if we were allowed to. And
it is a pity that there's so much attention given
to the allowed minority who spread a lot on the
information about mining, including some politicians who don't seem to
understand what's good for the economy. But the world wants minerals.
We have some. Let's mine what we can responsibly. It's
a win win. More people earning money means more money
in the economy. And I think, as you said earlier,

(01:15):
we can't rely on everyone else for everything. If we
can do it here, we should. And you know, we
just think that this is a positive part of the
economy at the time that not all parts of the
economy are performing well. We've had an increase in employment,
increase in gold production, increase in new permit applications. There's
a lot of interest internationally, particularly in critical minerals. So

(01:40):
you know, this is a good news story.

Speaker 1 (01:42):
Yeah, everyone talks about gold. What else do we export?

Speaker 2 (01:46):
Coal? We export quite a lot of coal, and it's
used in the steel making countries. It remains the best
option for high heat production of steel, and so that
is and we have a little bit of critical minerals
that have been going out to China, but not in

(02:08):
the scale that we need to see our critical minerals.

Speaker 1 (02:12):
When you say gold and the prospecting of when it
was five thousand an ounce, Did everyone go nuts in
at four thousand and falling it's tailed off or not?

Speaker 2 (02:21):
Really? No, So four thousand is still a really high
price for gold. When I started in this job four
years ago, it was under two thousand dollars an ounce,
so it is still at a very high price. We
have quite an unstable world and so there's demand for gold.
Is that kind of steadying economy and gold production is

(02:44):
at for about seventeen percent on last year, so we're
producing more as well.

Speaker 1 (02:52):
Give us a word, Josie, give us a word for
the industry at the moment. What's your vibe? Is it bullish, robust, gangbusters?

Speaker 2 (03:00):
Optimistic? We remain optimistic because there are still hurdles and
you know, there's a lot of change in the regulatory
reform that is absolutely needed. We would want to see
the changes to the conservation I mean, the next go through.
There's things that make it hard to do any kind
of productive business in New Zealand. So it's farmers us.

(03:23):
Anyone who's producing anything from the land struggles considerably with
red tape. So it is good to have the strategy.
The critical minerals list and a minister that is bullish
in trying to get the mining industry up and running
better than it has been.

Speaker 1 (03:42):
Good stuff, nice to catch up. Appreciate it very much,
as she refers, of course, to Kneepads Jones Joseph Bedell,
who is the CEO of the New Zealand Minerals Council.
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