The 2020 edition of Australia’s Identified Mineral Resources (AIMR) report by Geoscience Australia has confirmed that 2019 saw the highest mining exploration spend since 2012. Mining contributed 12 per cent to Australia’s gross domestic product in 2019, compared to 8.4 per cent of GDP in 2018.
Australia entered the COVID-19 economic crisis in a strong position thanks to its mineral resources. At the end of 2019, Australia remained a global leader in mineral exploration and production, and one of the world’s most desirable locations for investing in the mineral sector.
Minister for Resources, Water and Northern Australia, the Hon. Keith Pitt MP said in 2019, Australia’s mineral exports were valued at $234 billion, accounting for 47 per cent of all Australia’s exported goods and services. Investment in mineral exploration increased by 21 per cent, compared to the previous year, reaching $2.6 billion.
“Gold accounted for 40 per cent of exploration expenditure, with a strong gold price creating a modern gold rush,” Minister Pitt said.
The Minister noted that Australia remained the world’s top producer of iron ore with 36 per cent of global production and we also produced 56 per cent of the world’s lithium, which is becoming increasingly important for battery storage technologies.
“Advancements in technology are driving the world’s appetite for critical minerals. Because of their use in cutting-edge low-carbon, defence, medical and other applications, demand for commodities like lithium, cobalt and graphite is projected to rise significantly over coming decades,” he said.
“With more than 300 operating mines producing 26 major and minor mineral commodities, our strength in this sector has enabled our economy to remain resilient throughout the global pandemic and recession.”
The Minister said the Government’s $225 million Exploring for the Future program, led by Geoscience Australia, is opening up new exploration opportunities across the nation, supporting new mineral discovery that is essential for Australia’s future economic prosperity.
“Already we’ve seen significant new investment in resource exploration across Northern Australia because of this program, with over 120,000 square kilometres of greenfield exploration tenements in the region between Mount Isa in Queensland and Tennant Creek in the Northern Territory under application.”
AIMR draws on more than 40 years of data to reveal trends in reserve estimates, resource estimates and mine production over both short and long periods of time. It provides useful indicators of potential resource life and future supply capability. The latest edition of AIMR is available here.
