South32's Cannington near McKinlay is a silver and lead mine but it was coal and gas that prime minister Scott Morrison wanted to talk about when he paid a visit on Wednesday.
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Mr Morrison told travelling media that Australia's coal mines still had decades left of productivity left.
"These mines have got, you know, 10, 20, 30 years to run," Mr Morrison said.
"I think people who work in these sectors know that things change over time. And they understand that.
'So long as they comply with all the environmental standards and all the environmental requirements, well, they should get on with their business."
His comments followed an incident at the mine where the prime minister was trapped in a faulty lift for 10 minutes before being released.
The PM then made a joke at his portly Assistant Minister for Road Safety Freight Transport's expense.
"Would have been tight if Scotty Buchholz was in there," he said.
Mr Buchholz was one of five minister who accompanied Mr Morrison to Cloncurry the night before.
Mr Morrison also said he has struck an agreement with major gas exporters to guarantee domestic supply at competitive prices.
The two-year deal is designed to ensure Australia does not experience a shortfall in supply at the expense of exports.
But the pact does not include formal price controls, which manufacturers had been pushing for, but were resisted by the gas industry.
Mr Morrison insists gas will be critical to the pandemic economic recovery, with many manufacturing businesses reliant on gas to operate.
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