Coal mining, beef production, power generation, dryland cropping and irrigation cropping such as lucerne and cotton are the Shire's major industries.

A variety of soil types suitable for the production of a wide range of crops, together with some of the best grazing, farming and irrigation land in the State, give the Shire enormous agricultural potential, with further potential for processing and value-adding.

The Banana Shire is rich in natural resources with extensive undeveloped coal deposits in the Theodore, Moura and Baralaba area. There are abundant supplies of coalbed methane gas, which is utilised for power production and other industrial uses. The Shire is currently the focus for development of LNG (Liquified Natural Gas) pipelines running from the Surat and Bowen Basins through to Gladstone.