Queensland Unlocks More Land for Resource Exploration

More land has been unlocked in Queensland, Australia, to be explored in a hunt for potential future resource projects.

On Friday (February 1), the Minister for Natural Resources, Mines and Energy Anthony Lynham announced the recipients of mineral and coal tenders in the North West Minerals Province and the Bowen and Surat basins.

This included junior explorer Red Metal (ASX:RDM), which now has access to 400 square kilometers of land, located 250 kilometers north of Mount Isa, to explore for new zinc, lead, copper and silver deposits.

“Unlocking land for resource exploration — whether it is to uncover coal, gas or minerals — is vital to continuing resource development, whether it’s for mining jobs or royalties to fund our hospitals and schools,” Lynham said in a statement.

“Exploration is essential for Queensland to keep up with the world’s thirst for tech minerals and our own manufacturing sector’s ongoing need for high-quality base metals. New coal deposits offer energy security and a long term economic future for all Queenslanders.”

Joining Red Metal on the recipient list are Denham Coal, a subsidiary of Pioneer Coal, Queensland Coal Investments, Enex Togara and Wandoan Holdings. These companies will soon have access to 369 square kilometers of land in the Bowen and Surat basins for exploration work.

The fresh tenders come after Queensland broke records in 2018 for hitting $80.5 billion in exports for the 12 months to November. The export growth was driven by coal, liquefied natural gas, minerals and beef, with coal exports having risen by $4 billion to $43 billion.

According to the statement, a new geological report indicates Queensland contains almost double the amount of coal than was last known. The report states 63 billion tonnes of raw coal in-situ are in the Australian state, an increase of approximately 29 billion tonnes on the last estimate. Lynham said this includes over 14 billion tonnes of coking coal.

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Securities Disclosure: I, Olivia Da Silva, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.