Australia's reputation as a country sitting atop a mine car was no exaggeration. Although several of the major mineral deposits that would later make Australia famous had yet to be discovered, based on its proven mineral resources alone, Australia was already a country rich in mineral wealth.
Iron ore and coal were indispensable to industrial development. Australia had already discovered several deposits in the uninhabited western regions, with total reserves reaching 360 million tons and 1.9 billion tons respectively.
Perhaps those two figures seemed enormous at first glance, but compared with Australia's proven reserves in later generations—15 billion tons of iron ore and 900 billion tons of coal—these figures were merely a fraction of a fraction.
Yet compared with the other countries of this era, Australia's proven mineral resources were already immense.
Even based on the British Empire's current steel production, Australia's iron ore would be enough to supply Britain for thirteen years.
Although the British Empire's steel output would not remain unchanged forever, Australia could not possibly catch up with Britain's steel production without several years, or even a decade.
This also meant that even if Australia went all out to develop its industry now, it absolutely would not face a shortage of mineral resources within the next decade or more.
Then again, as a major mineral power, Australia would lack only capital, equipment, and talent at any point—not the minerals scattered everywhere.
"Minister Pierre, tell me more about your plan." Pierre Silvio Berlusconi's proposal also matched Arthur's own intentions, so Arthur addressed Minister Pierre with some interest.
"Your Highness, our country's uninhabited western regions contain abundant mineral resources. Among them, coal and iron ore are essential resources for industrial development. My proposal is, first, to build large-scale industrial production bases in the uninhabited western regions. Using the equipment you have provided, Your Highness, we should raise our steel output to at least 100,000 tons and above 200,000 tons within three years. At the same time, we can use the steel we produce to lay railways between the western industrial zone and our cities, building a transportation network. Once our steel output reaches a new stage after three years, it will not be too late to pursue the technology industries." Seeing that Arthur was very interested in his proposal, Minister Pierre's voice grew louder.
"Minister Pierre, do you mean that our plan is to increase steel production first, while the other matters can be set aside for the time being?" Arthur asked with a smile.
Increasing steel production might be difficult for other backward countries, but for Australia, it was actually quite simple.
Australia possessed 50 million pounds' worth of industrial equipment from the United Kingdom. Arthur had carefully selected all of it, and it included basic industrial equipment such as steelmaking furnaces.
The advantage of this was that Australia could quickly master the use of the industrial equipment. Once it had fully absorbed and made good use of it, Australia would be able to rank among the world's top twenty industrial powers.
"No, Your Highness. My proposal is that we should prioritize developing basic industries, including steel mills. That does not mean we should abandon other industrial development in the short term. I believe Australia's ultimate industrial goal should be to develop into an industrial circle capable of independent research and production, forming a complete system. As for the technology industries, including munitions factories and shipyards, our ultimate goal should be to achieve independent research, development, and production. Therefore, while developing basic industries, we must also bring in large numbers of specialists from Europe to fill the talent gap caused by our country's backward educational foundation. From an industrial perspective, developing industry and attracting talent must proceed simultaneously," Minister Pierre said.
Compared with some other countries that were also striving to develop, Australia still possessed enormous advantages.
Because Australians were of the same race, and because Australia was geographically distant from Europe, it had essentially no major conflicts with any European country. It could attract advanced technology and talent from every country in Europe.
What Minister Pierre was really saying was that Australia would eventually need the ability to independently research and develop advanced technology and equipment, rather than relying solely on imports from Europe.
This meant that Australia had to attract large numbers of talented people from across Europe. Otherwise, independent research would remain nothing but empty talk.
Arthur nodded. As someone the British Empire had previously dispatched to Australia, Minister Pierre's abilities were indeed not to be underestimated.
If importing equipment to develop basic industries represented the present, then attracting talent to strengthen research and development represented the future.
For a great power that wished to rise—or even dominate an entire region—the ability to conduct independent research and development in science and technology was indispensable.
If a country could only rely on importing advanced industrial products from abroad, then even if it used massive imports of advanced equipment to greatly increase its strength, it would ultimately remain at the mercy of others and could never truly become a powerful nation.
"Minister Pierre, what is our current steel production?" Arthur asked.
It had to be said that the colonial era was also the period when the gap between Western countries and backward nations was at its greatest.
While the steel output of Western countries had already surpassed one million tons, and even reached ten million tons, the island nation that would later rise to the ranks of the great powers through the Meiji Restoration produced only a little over 1,000 tons of steel.
Australia's situation was somewhat better, but only slightly. Because of its abundant iron ore and coal, Britain had established small-scale steel mills in Australia.
"Your Highness, last year, the six states produced approximately 3,700 tons of steel and 5,000 tons of pig iron," Pierre replied without hesitation.
These figures were Australia's actual data, which he had learned over the past week. Since he knew they were very likely to come in handy, Minister Pierre had memorized them thoroughly.
"I'll give you three years. Triple Australia's steel output every year. Can you do it?" Arthur looked at the rather confident Minister Pierre and asked with a smile.
Tripling the output every year was no easy task. The first year might be simple, but the difficulty would double in the second year.
Three times 5,000 tons of pig iron was 15,000 tons, while three times 15,000 tons was 45,000 tons.
Not to mention the final year: three times 45,000 tons would reach nearly 140,000 tons, bringing total steel production to around 250,000 tons.
"No problem, Your Highness! As long as you provide me with sufficient funding and equipment, I guarantee that I will triple our steel output every year during these three years." Minister Pierre answered decisively without hesitation.
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