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Australia

Resources & Infrastructure - Australia

	Education		Communication
	Natural Resources		Energy
	Transport

Education

Australia has a well developed education system. State governments are responsible for the provision of primary and secondary education. Australia has 40 universities, two of which are privately owned.

Natural Resources

Australia has an abundance of mineral resources and the land is suitable for agriculture. Around 61% of land is used for agricultural purposes and 5% is occupied by forests. Australia has substantial reserves of some important minerals, namely, lead, iron ore, bauxite and zinc.

Transport

Rail freight remains an important transport system in Australia. 54% of Australia's freight is hauled by rail, 44% by sea and about 2% by roads.

Communication

Australia's communication sector is undergoing rapid growth and substantial change. Telstra was the sole supplier of telephone services in Australia. However, a second network was established by privately owned telecoms company, namely, Optes Communications.

Energy

Australia has massive deposits of coal and uranium and is an exporter of energy. It has substantial oil reserves off the coast of Victoria, Western Australia and the Northern territory. Natural gas is piped from large reserves in Victoria, South Australia, Queensland and Western Australia for town and industrial use. Most of Australia's black coal reserves are in New South Wales and Queensland. Black coal exports are expected to continue growing rapidly maintaining Australia's position as the world's largest coal exporter. Australia also has around 31% of the Western world's low-cost uranium reserves. Coal is the most important source of electric power generation, meeting about 80% of primary energy needs. Exports earnings from liquified natural gas (LNG) accounted for A$ 2.7 bn during 2000-01, mainly from Japan.

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