Australia has plenty of iron-ore and plenty of coal, but they are on opposite sides of the continent.
It would be cheaper for a WA smelter to ship coking coal from the other side of the world than from Newcastle, and equally cheaper for BHP, Newcastle to get it's iron ore from Brazil than the Pilbara.
That terrible socialist Joh Bjelke-Peterson had visions of doing this but it was never practical, still isn't.
