The Queensland Government has passed legislative reforms through State Parliament that it says will provide greater certainty for the mining and exploration sectors.

 

State Minister for Natural Resources and Mines, Andrew Cripps, said that the reforms would introduce a competitive tendering process to explore the State’s highly prospective coal tenures.

 

“Changes proposed through the Mining and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2012 will expand and improve the competitive tendering process introduced earlier this year,” Mr Cripps said.

 

The reforms build on previous amendments to the petroleum and gas tenures that allowed competitive tendering that the Government passed earlier this year.

 

“Introducing a competitive process to secure exploration tenure will ensure the most appropriate explorers with a commitment to resource development secure the rights to explore highly prospective land,” Mr Cripps said.

 

Mr Cripps said the Bill also proposed measures that underpin the future development of the Aurukun bauxite resouse on the Cape York area, which the State Government recently called for Expressions of Interest for its development.

 

Amendments to the Mineral Resources Act 1989 will ensure:

  • the controlled release of land and competitive tendering for coal exploration by expanding and improving the existing Petroleum and Gas (Production and Safety) Act 2004 provisions in the Mineral Resources Act
  • competitive tendering, with a cash bidding component, for highly prospective coal and petroleum and gas areas to ensure an adequate return on the State’s resources reflective of in-ground value.