Newsroom

February 26, 2025

Katter’s Australian Party (KAP) Leader and Traeger MP Robbie Katter has launched a broadside attack on Powerlink and the APA Group, raising concerns the two are collaborating in an attempt to kill the revolutionary CopperString Project and subsequently deny the people of North Queensland their economic potential.

A furious Mr Katter is calling for the Powerlink CEO and Board to be sacked immediately for their financial mismanagement, and recent politicisation, of the project[1].

"Powerlink promotes CopperString to the people of Mount Isa and Cloncurry and the entire North Queensland as the most important economic development in history, and then their CEO lines up in the financial press to create uncertainty and suggest delay to the project reaching our mines – it’s gross incompetence, completely contradicting the Premier and the best interests our minerals and industrial economy,’ he said.

"The Premier knows what it takes to grow the economy in North and North West Queensland and that's why he has reaffirmed his commitment to CopperString over and over again, and he certainly won't be influenced by a Sydney investment company or an academic about how you build industry in North Queensland.

"The Powerlink CEO and Board have fumbled the ball too many times, telling inconsistent stories, spending money on promotion and entertainment centres and now they seem to be working in partnership with a Sydney gas company to shake the confidence over every regional Council between the Port of Townsville and the mines and Mount Isa - they need to be sacked immediately, it's untenable to have people in charge of Powerlink who don't have the confidence of regional Queensland."

Mr Katter said APA’s interests in the future of the North West were to solely protect their energy monology.

"APA is selfishly protecting their monopoly and have destroyed their credibility in regional Queensland,” he said.

"APA is happy to build transmission in NSW for the ridiculous renewable energy zones, but want to kill a powerline to supply mines and processing in North and North West Queensland.

"There is an electricity supply crisis in the North West Minerals Province - there is a constant stream of miners, from the Eva project at Cloncurry which is a massive new investment, to the CEO of Glencore all saying that electricity in North West Queensland is killing their businesses and will kill copper processing in Townsville and Mount Isa if not fixed immediately.

The CopperString project, which is already funded and has bipartisan support, is essential to unlocking $500 billion worth of critical minerals (and renewable energy capacity) in North West Queensland.

This resource is incredibly significant in terms of its strategic and sovereign importance, and it equals the value of critical minerals currently being pursued by US President Donald Trump in the Ukraine[2].

[1] https://www.afr.com/policy/energy-and-climate/qld-urged-to-flip-giant-power-line-project-to-save-money-20250224-p5lelj

[2] https://www.politico.eu/article/trump-demands-500b-in-rare-earths-from-ukraine-for-support/