Explorer

This quarter has been a hugely exciting time for the NSW minerals industry!

Two greenfields projects in the Central West region were approved in less than a week in early April – the Regis Resources’ McPhillamys Gold Project near Blaney and Silver Mines’ Bowdens Silver Project in the Mudgee region.

ABC Bullion opened their global flagship store in Martin Place in Sydney, a first for the city. A watershed moment for the state’s minerals industry that exemplifies the area’s rich mineral wealth and geological significance, as well as the value potential for both companies and the people of NSW.

These approvals came just after the NSW State election on 25 March where a Labor minority government was elected for the first time in 12 years. AMEC has congratulated the new Ministers and Shadow Ministers including The Hon. Courtney Houssos MLC, the newly appointed Minister for Natural Resources and Finance (previous Shadow Minister of Resources). AMEC is looking forward to working with the newly elected government to unlock the potential and opportunities offered by the state’s minerals sector, focusing on supporting critical minerals development, streamlining assessments and approvals and uplifting government support and service.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics quarterly report on Mineral Exploration Expenditure for the December 2022 quarter revealed that for the calendar year of 2022, there was a 17.2% increase in expenditure in NSW from the year prior and more than 100% increase on the expenditure ten years ago. Importantly, there was also an increase in the expenditure spent in NSW in comparison to the rest of Australia, with 8.7% of Australia’s expenditure in NSW in 2022 (in comparison to 62% in WA and 13.6% in Queensland). The Annual Survey of Mining Companies published by the Fraser Institute noted improvements in NSW with the state ranked as 23rd of 62 jurisdictions for Investment Attractiveness Index, 20th for Policy Perception Index, and 25th for the Best Practices Mineral Potential Index.

This quarter, AMEC hosted our biggest ever NSW event with over 200 people attending our networking drinks prior to the RIU Resources Roundup.

In March, AMEC hosted a webinar on native title and Aboriginal cultural heritage for the NSW minerals industry, which was also well attended. Participants had the opportunity to hear from the NSW government, legal experts and an industry case study on these important topics.

AMEC has continued to advocate on behalf of members as a voice to government on upcoming reforms and submissions. These include comments on proposed changes to WHS regulation reform and additional guidance on native title and the infrastructure facility process.

There is no rest for AMEC in NSW as we work with our dedicated member working group on updating the AMEC NSW Land Access Toolkit, reflecting the recent regulatory changes, new government web links and documents. The toolkit will be available online soon and accompanied by a workshop to support explorers across the state – so watch this space!

AMEC has made the following submissions on behalf of member companies:

• WHS Regulation Reform
• Native title guideline Infrastructure Facility Process

To learn more please contact Lucy McClean on 0412 283 252.