Mining Giants Confirm Attendance as WA Mining 2026 Returns to Perth

What the Conference Covers

WA Mining brings together operators, equipment and technology suppliers, investors and policymakers for two days of presentations, panel discussions and exhibition displays covering the full breadth of the state’s resources sector, from established iron ore and gold operations through to emerging critical minerals and battery metals projects. The event has become an important fixture for WA’s mining technology and services sector specifically, offering smaller equipment, technology and services companies direct access to the major operators who represent their primary potential customer base.

Perth’s position as what industry commentators increasingly describe as the world’s mining technology capital, home to corporate venture capital arms run by BHP, Rio Tinto, Fortescue and Mineral Resources, gives events like WA Mining particular significance for the state’s growing mining technology startup ecosystem, offering founders direct access to the corporate decision-makers who represent both potential customers and potential investors.

A Sector Navigating Mixed Conditions

This year’s conference takes place against a genuinely divergent backdrop across different parts of WA’s resources sector. Iron ore exports have hit record volumes even as prices face gradual downward pressure from new global supply, gold miners are enjoying a windfall from near-record prices even as inflationary cost pressures squeeze margins, and the lithium sector continues navigating a painful, multi-year price downturn that has forced several major processing projects into care and maintenance.

That mixed picture is likely to feature prominently in conference discussions, with delegates weighing how individual companies and the broader WA resources sector should best navigate a period where different commodities within the same broad industry are experiencing sharply different fortunes simultaneously.

Technology and Automation on Display

Given the Pilbara’s emergence as a global centre for autonomous mining haulage and the broader push toward automation across WA’s resources sector, technology and automation displays are expected to feature prominently among this year’s exhibitors, building on the state’s established reputation for pioneering large-scale mining automation at Rio Tinto, BHP and Fortescue operations.

What It Means for the Broader WA Economy

Beyond the direct commercial dealmaking that typically occurs at events of this scale, WA Mining’s continued strong attendance from major resources companies serves as a broader signal of confidence in the state’s resources sector, even amid the sector’s currently uneven conditions across different commodities. For WA’s broader economy, which continues to rely heavily on resources royalties to fund its record infrastructure and services spending, the health and direction of conversations happening at events like this one carry significance well beyond the exhibition hall itself.

Looking Ahead

As the September dates approach, organisers expect strong attendance building on previous years’ events, with the conference continuing to serve as a key annual barometer of confidence and direction across Western Australia’s resources sector, a sector that remains, for all its current cross-commodity divergence, the foundational pillar of the state’s economy.

Investor and Startup Interest

WA Mining has increasingly become a venue where early-stage mining technology startups seek to connect with the corporate venture capital arms run by the state’s major producers, a dynamic industry observers say has grown more pronounced as Perth’s reputation as a genuine mining technology hub has strengthened. Startups pitching at this year’s event are expected to span areas including automation, safety technology and sustainability-focused innovations, reflecting the priority areas major resources companies have consistently flagged as key investment interests.

For founders navigating WA’s distinctive mining technology investment landscape, where corporate venture capital arms tend to move more slowly than independent venture funds but often write considerably larger cheques once convinced, events like WA Mining offer a valuable, concentrated opportunity to build the relationships that can eventually lead to funding.

Conference organisers expect strong attendance figures again this year, consistent with the event’s established position as one of the key fixtures on WA’s resources industry calendar, alongside other major events like the Global Resources Innovation Expo held earlier in the year.

Delegates attending this year will also be able to weigh in on how the sector should respond to the critical minerals downturn currently affecting lithium producers, alongside celebrating the record export volumes and elevated prices currently benefiting the state’s iron ore and gold sectors respectively.