According to the National METS survey 2020 by Austmine, the METS sector is significant in size and a substantial contributor to Australia's economy.
While most companies reported less than $20 million in revenue, average revenue across the survey was $189 million, with companies in New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland reporting the highest revenue.
The survey found the sector was driven by innovation and technology and had a "vibrant collaborative ecosystem which enables an innovative culture to flourish and helps to produce world class solutions, businesses and people".
Of the 619 respondent companies 65% exported their products around the world.
One in five companies categorised their key capabilities as services and technology solutions and 17% offered engineering and professional and other services.
The average percentage of revenue derived from mining and minerals activities was 66%, with METS companies operating across the country but mainly concentrated in Queensland, NSW and WA.
There were 12% of METS companies identified as being woman-owned or women-led, while 5% were certified with Supply Nation and 4% Indigenous owned.
Just over eight in 10 companies surveyed were Australian owned.
About two thirds of all METS companies operated within the production or extraction part of the mining lifecycle and about half worked in design and construction, with another 50% in processing.
Coal remains the number one minerals base companies work in at 68%, which is down from the 73% recorded in the 2015 survey.
The proportion of METS firms operating in iron ore also dropped, from 73% in 2015 to 61% in 2020.
Companies reported the main impact from COVID-19 was on revenue, with 56% experiencing a decrease.
Six in 10 reported a loss of between 10%-39% while 3% experienced a 100% reduction in revenue.
COVID-19 was also blamed for a loss in customers, projects and profitability, although one in 10 companies reported no impact on their business from the pandemic.
One in 3 companies said there had actually been a positive impact.
The survey found that compared to the 2015 downturn results COVID-19 had a far more negative impact. It is likely the full impact has not yet been realised.
The most prominent issue around the pandemic was border restrictions, both domestically and internationally.
