A new report details that national exploration expenditure has risen by almost 70 per cent since the COVID-19 pandemic began, with Queensland explorers spending the second-highest amount in their search for new resource discoveries.
Queensland Exploration Council (QEC) Chair, Kim Wainwright, said data released by resources analyst and QEC member AUSTEX Resource Opportunities confirms the state’s exploration sector is on the rise.
“New, national data from AUSTEX shows an incredible 155 per cent increase in Australian exploration expenditure over the past five years, to reach nearly $700 million in the second quarter of 2021,” Ms Wainwright said.
“The data confirms the strong growth we saw in the latest ABS exploration figures released last month, which was the first time we’ve been able to look at how the exploration industry has performed over a 12-month period since the onset of COVID from June 2021 on the ABS exploration expenditure data.”
“Interestingly, nearly half of Australia’s exploration expenditure in the June 2021 quarter targeted gold and silver, which reflects the recent strong growth of those commodity prices,” Ms Wainwright said.
“We expected strong exploration expenditure growth for these commodity sectors, as we know there is a positive correlation between commodity prices and exploration expenditure, and this was specifically called out in QEC’s 2020 Exploration Scorecard.”
“We also know investors want to hear about Queensland gold projects, with a recent investor event showcasing QEC member Aeris Resources’ Cracow gold project, located 500 kilometres North-West of Brisbane, attracting strong interest,” she said.
“Brad Cox, the General Manager of Geology at Aeris Resources, presented the company’s plans to further explore newly acquired tenements, with a commitment of $13 million to explore in 2022.”
AUSTEX’s national data showed that oil and gas achieved second place at 13 per cent of expenditure, with copper coming in third at 11 per cent.
“Overall, this national data shows the exploration industry is once again thriving and we look forward to seeing continued growth for Queensland explorers,” Ms Wainwright added.
Austex Resource Opportunities Pty Ltd (AUSTEX) is a Brisbane-based business that provides independent information and data analysis on the status of all ASX-listed resource projects. Austex’s latest report can be found here.
