labor 'killed' the mining boom: abbott, page-39

Admittedly, all businesses are struggling under high costs including the miners which also are affected by metal prices beyond their control. These prices may go up or down.

What we do not need are extra cost burdens brought about by the Mining tax, carbon tax, red tapes in env approvals, green tapes from the Greens and minority environment groups eg. in the Tarkine region in north west Tasmania. All of these will only add to the cost, even before the project can produce their first ounces.

Mining is an expensive venture with a very long lead time from beginning to the stage where the company can start to build their factory and related infra-structure. It will take a few years to reach from exploration to production.

Little wonders prospective investors prefer to look for projects in Africa and South America instead of Australia