A co-investment fund for critical minerals exploration will be established in New South Wales, with $2.5 million in seed money to be made available to help miners unlock rare earths deposits in the state.
Miners will be paid up to $250,000 per project for drilling, geophysics and geochemistry under the new Critical Minerals Exploration Program, announced by NSW Resources minister Courtney Houssos on Thursday.
The program forms part of the government’s Critical Minerals and High-Tech Metals Strategy and is designed to support a pipeline of critical minerals projects, building on other efforts to bolster the state’s industry.
It arrives less than six months after the state government announced plans to defer $250 million in critical minerals royalties from July and as the federal Opposition pledges to reinstate the Junior Minerals Exploration Incentive.
Other states like Victoria and Queensland are also investigating ways to unlock their deposits, including through creating priority development zones and centralising project approvals.
Under the two-year Critical Minerals Exploration Program, four funding streams will be available, all of which require a 50 per cent co-investment from successful applicants.
Up to $250,000 will be available for exploration projects that require drilling at a depth of more than 250 metres, while drilling projects less than 250 metres deep will be capped at $150,000.
The fund will also make up to $70,000 available for exploration geophysics and up to $50,000 available for exploration geochemistry projects. All projects will need to be completed by October 2027.
“This important funding will help get more explorers out into regional NSW to find new deposits of critical minerals,” Ms Houssos said of the program, which will open for 10-weeks on April 16.
“Critical minerals are going to power the net zero future. Whether it’s solar panels, wind turbines, batteries or electric vehicles, they all need materials and minerals that are found right here in NSW.”
The co-investment fund was welcomed by the Association of Mining and Exploration Companies, with chief executive Warren Pearce saying it “shows a high level of understand and listening to the concerns of industry” from government.
NSW currently has 13 active major metals and critical minerals mines, mostly across the state’s central west and far west, while 190 exploration titles are currently being explored.
A further 10 critical minerals and high-tech metals projects are “ready for investment”. The government estimates these projects will need around $7.6 billion in capital investment.
On Thursday, the federal Coalition said it would reinstate the Junior Minerals Exploration Incentive, which was left out of last month’s Budget despite the government’s clean energy inspired critical minerals push.
The Junior Minerals Exploration Incentive, which has been in place since 2018, is a tax credit available to small companies on greenfield exploration expenditure.
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