Australian Potash Ltd (ASX:APC) has been working closely with the indigenous communities of WA to help foster the economic capacity of remote Aboriginal and other communities in the north-eastern Goldfields region over the long term.
As such, APC has created the Laverton Training Centre (LTC), an initiative that supports its Indigenous Engagement Strategy and broader regional development goals.
In the LTC’s initial three years of operation, APC aims to train between 32 and 48 trainees in Certificate II Rural Operations. Funding or Aboriginal Ranger training schemes are also in discussion.
There are post-training employment opportunities for up to 32 people in the mining and civil construction sectors.
The LTC is expected to have a substantial annual regional economic impact of $40 million across demand for goods and services, wages and salaries and value-added services such as freight and transport and housing rental.
Not-for-profit indigenous support
APC’s multi-generational Lake Wells SOP project will be operating in the Shire of Laverton for at least 30 years and the company is determined to leave a positive imprint on indigenous communities during this time and beyond.
“We are fortunate to enjoy support for the Laverton Training Centre from local industry, including several of the region’s major mine operators, the Shires of Ngaanyatjarraku, Laverton and Leonora, the Department of Training and Workforce Development (DTWD), the Goldfields-Esperance Development Commission (GEDC) and most importantly, regional Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people,” managing director and CEO Matt Shackleton said.
“It is these people we are in turn looking to support by providing a not-for-profit, fully accredited training program directed at improving their economic capacity.
“Based upon the teaching ethos and successful outcomes achieved over four years of ‘pilot’ operation at Wiluna, the LTC is looking to generate the same successes across a much broader section of the community afforded by being more centrally located in Laverton.
“With the financial and training support of Central Regional TAFE in Kalgoorlie and DTWD, and with us exercising our network across industry in the region, it is envisaged that the LTC will, in time, become a prominent example of a successful industry-government endeavour.”
What is the LTC
The LTC is designed to prepare indigenous trainees to enter the workforce.
Students will complete instructional TAFE units that comprise the Certificate II in Rural Operations, with several of these units specifically targeting future employment in the Aboriginal Ranger Program, a WA State Government program that provides employment and jobs for remote Aboriginal people on country.
The LTC’s aim is not only to create immediate employment but also long-term, continuous employment.
Key to the success of the program will be induction of trainees by familial cohort.
APC believes that by training and practising with relatives and other members of their family group, attendance and completion of the training program and units will be materially improved.
This is a unique training approach refined over four years of piloting at Wiluna under the guidance of the LTC’s general manager Mac Jensen and has attracted enormous demand for post-training employment.
Positions sought include civil roadworks through to mine site operators and ranger roles.
The LCT is seeking charity status with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission, however, it is expecting to become funding self-sufficient within the first year of operations as it looks to industry to fund its annual capital and operating expenditure.
The LTC’s initial intake of trainees is programmed for Q1 2022.
About APC
APC holds a 100% interest in the Lake Wells Sulphate of Potash (LSOP), approximately 500 kilometres northeast of Kalgoorlie in Western Australia's Eastern Goldfields.
It is currently finalising pre-development plans to start construction, with first production from the LSOP scheduled in mid-2023.
ACP will market high quality, premium SOP products from the LSOP under the K-BriteTM brand – a registered trademark brand of Australian Potash Limited.
APC also holds a 100% interest in the Laverton Downs Project, 5 kilometres north of Laverton, in Western Australia's Eastern Goldfields and a 30% free carried interest in the Lake Wells Gold Project, 500 kilometres northeast of Kalgoorlie.