Federal Resources Minister Martin Ferguson has again backed the $4.8 billion bid by coal companies to buy Queensland Rail's coal freight track network.
Speaking today after a Queensland Resources Council lunch in Brisbane, Mr Ferguson said the Queensland government should look again at the bid.
"The major coal companies in Queensland have a made a very substantive bid for the purchase of the Queensland Rail coal corridor links," he said.
Mr Ferguson said the bid was backed by the Commonwealth government and the Australian Rail Track Corporation, a Commonwealth-owned organisation.
He rejected suggestions the Queensland government has ruled out the bid.
"The Queensland Government has now actually acknowledged that is going to give some consideration to the QR privatisation model, proposed by the coal companies," Mr Ferguson said.
"I think it is a better model. It represents a separation of 'below' and 'above' rail and actually means in my opinion, a greater capacity for aggressive competition above rail."
The Queensland government plans to float both Queensland coal freight arm and the coal haulage track later this year as part of their $15 billion privatisation plan.
Queensland Treasurer Andrew Fraser last month said the bid would be considered, but said the government preferred to sell QR's entire freight business this year.
It has previously indicated a total sale price of $7 billion, including rolling stock, bulk and general freight networks.
This afternoon, Mr Fraser said the government remained committed to the public float.
"The IPO is continuing as planned," he said.
Mr Ferguson was in Brisbane as part of the Federal Government's push to promote its new 30 per cent Minerals Resource Rent Tax for coal and iron ore, replacing the highly contested 40 per cent Resource Super Profits Tax announced in May and scrapped last Friday.
Queensland's resources sector was valued at $48 billion in 2008-09, with about a dozen firms likely to be captured above the $50 million annual profit threshhold.
Mr Ferguson's speech broke now new ground because more detailed information is now being analysed behind closed doors with companies and the implementation team headed by himself and the current chief of BHP Billiton, Don Argus.
Outside the conference, Mr Ferguson predicted the new MRRT would cause an expansion in natural gas energy, not an expansion of coal-fired power stations in Australia.
"I note in New South Wales, where there hasn't been a coal-fired power station built in some years, all the peaking capacity built over recent years, has been in gas-fired peaking opportunities," he said.
Mr Ferguson said smaller mining companies had not been left out of talks.
"It will be the responsibility of the transition committee, headed by Don Argus and myself, to actually talk about the implementation and see what it means for small and big miners," he said.
"But I remind you of this – in terms of small miners there is a threshhold of $50 million below which you are not caught by the MRRT tax system.
"Now I don't know a lot of small miners who earn $50 million in profits each year."
The federal government planned to have the new MRRT in place by July 2012.
The legislation will be introduced into Federal Parliament the second half of 2011.
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