The delegation will be led by Queensland Resources Council president John Pegler and chief executive Michael Roche and includes senior executives from Queensland coal mining companies.

The delegation will argue against the increase in coal royalty rates from 7% to 10%, announced in the state budget just over two weeks ago.

“As a capital-intensive industry, we need certainty and constancy of regimes as billion dollar investments are required to build the new mines industry has planned," Roche said.

“Massive hikes in royalties and the imposition of new levies – without warning or consultation – are not something we have come to expect from a government that lays claim to being focused on the long-term attractiveness of mining investment in Queensland."

Roche said the QRC delegation would "contrast short-term perceptions of one-year contract prices for coal with the long-term realities of skyrocketing development costs and the huge recovery bill following Bowen Basin floods in January and February".

“Rather than the forecast $594 million budget windfall delivered by the royalty increases being directed to addressing the needs of resource sector communities, the royalty hike has simply allowed the Government to boast that the budget delivers a large surplus," Roche said.

“The existing 7 percent tax regime provided the Government with full exposure to the upside in pricing, with the gains being shared. The additional royalty will only eat into capital available for new investment."