As part of the Queensland Government's $18 million Greenfields 2020 program, the Minister for the Department of Natural Resources and Mines has announced the Department's plan to release 2,364 km2 of greenfield land in north-west Queensland for mineral exploration.
Partner Jonathan Fulcher and associate Courtney Smith outline the land areas to be released and discuss the application process.
Key points
- The land to be released for exploration is currently subject to Restricted Areas 351, 353 and 354. These areas were gazetted on 27 July 2012, prohibiting future applications for mining tenements in this area.
- Restricted Areas 351, 353 and 354 are to be repealed on 7 July 2013, which will allow explorers to apply for exploration permits for minerals on and from 8 July 2013.
- The released land is said to be potentially rich in a range of minerals and rare earth elements including copper, lead, zinc, gold, silver and phosphate resources.
- Please see the Department's website for more information on the greenfield land release.
Applying for exploration permits
Applications for exploration permits for minerals may be made in accordance with the Mineral Resources Act 1989 (Qld).
While the application process for exploration permits for minerals is currently a non-competitive one. The Mining and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2012 (Qld) proposes to change this so that applications may be made through a competitive tender process. For more information on the proposed competitive tender process and the other changes outlined in the Mining and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2012, please see Resources and Energy Alert: Legislation to introduce competitive tendering for resource tenements in Queensland.
A Parliamentary Committee is currently examining the Mining and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2012, with a committee report due on 12 March 2013. HopgoodGanim will continue to monitor the progress of the Bill and will issue further information about changes to the application as required.
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