The Queensland Future Skills Partnership will fund and facilitate the development and delivery of these qualifications supporting the introduction of new technologies within mining.

Asset president for BMA James Palmer said the partnership will drive innovation in new approaches to skilling the resources industry workforce for jobs of the future.

"As we enter the fourth industrial revolution, we are considering how we transform our technology and our workforce," he noted.

"The partnership will define the first wave of new skills that may be required to support technology advances, and to establish the education opportunities for individuals to acquire these skills."

He explained that the cope of training was still being finalised, but potential opportunities could include a traineeship qualification in autonomous operations and expanding existing trade apprenticeships to include autonomous competencies.

"We also hope to be able to deliver the first pilot of these programmes in the Bowen Basin region near our operations, expanding both existing and future workforce as well as local schools," he added.

CQUniversity's vice-chancellor and president, Professor Nick Klomp, said the partnership was an important step forward when it comes to engaging with industry and delivering future focused skills training.

Shannon Fentiman, minister for training and skills development, commented: "We hear all the time that the world of work is changing, and the rapid rate of occupational change and new technology adoption means that the need to re-skill and up-skill the existing workforce will be critical into the future."

She added that the partnership will examine the requirements for future skills and qualifications for the resources sector, and create an actionable plan to address these needs.

It will start work later this month, with the first steering committee meeting scheduled for late August at the CQUniversity Mackay Ooralea campus.