- EIS delivering almost $11 million in grants across three
programs
- Inaugural Co-funded Geophysics Program offers more than $3
million
- Continued interest in exploration for battery and critical
minerals
Mines and Petroleum
Minister David Michael today announced the successful applicants for Round 29
of the Exploration Incentive Scheme's (EIS) Co-funded Drilling Program, Series
7 of the Energy Analysis Program (EAP), and the inaugural Co-funded Geophysics
Program (CGP).
Forty-seven applicants
will receive grants worth almost $7.5 million in the EIS Round 29 for projects
to be drilled between June 2024 and November 2025.
The Co-funded Drilling
Program saw continued interest in battery minerals exploration this round, with
57 per cent of the successful 47 projects targeting these commodities,
including rare earth elements, lithium and nickel-cobalt.
The inaugural Co-funded
Geophysics Program awarded more than $3 million to 23 successful applicants for
Venture 1 of the program, with 78 per cent of them actively searching for
critical minerals.
The successful projects
will focus on largely under-explored greenfields areas in the central and
eastern parts of the State.
Series 7 of the Energy
Analysis Program will also offer $125,000 to three successful projects planned
in the Canning Basin.
Last year the co-funded
programs saw success from a number of drilling programs including that by
Future Metals which intersected high grade PGM mineralisation in a single EIS
co-funded hole at its Panton Project.
The Co-funded Drilling
Program will open for Round 30 applications in August 2024.
Applications for Series 8
of the Energy Analysis Program (EAP) and Venture 2 of the Co-funded Geophysics
Program (CGP) will open in February 2025.
For more information on
the EIS and this round's successful applicants, visit: Exploration
Incentive Scheme (EIS) (dmp.wa.gov.au)
Comments attributed to Mines and Petroleum Minister David Michael:
"Exploration is the
bedrock of ongoing success in our powerhouse resources sector and the Cook Government
is committed to helping facilitate new mineral discoveries.
"The high number of
applications we received is a strong indicator of the continued interest in
Western Australia's mining industry.
"I look forward to seeing
what exciting new finds result from the co-funded Round 29 projects."
