State Agreements are not a ‘one size fits all’ approach to resource development in Western Australia. Although all agreements have similar provisions, they are negotiated on a case-by-case basis and as such have project-specific clauses.
The Minister for State Development, Jobs and Trade will consider if a particular development needs a State Agreement and advise the proponents accordingly. Some of the criteria used in determining this need include:
- the lifespan of the project
- the requirement for long-term certainty for the proponents
- the existence of extensive or complex land tenure issues
- whether the project is located in a relatively remote area of the State, thus requiring significant infrastructure development, such as rail networks
- significance of the project to the economic development of the State.