The Government of Western Australia has announced an Approvals Response Plan will be implemented to improve assessment timeframes of exploration and mining approvals under the Mining Act.
The plan will redirect resources within the Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety to prioritise assessment processes to meet the demand of increasing pipeline of projects underway in Western Australia.
Acting Chamber of Minerals and Energy of Western Australia (CME) Chief Executive Rob Carruthers said the announcement of the plan was welcome news.
“We understand there are a variety of pressures on government department resources at this time, not the least the impact of a tight labour market,” Mr Carruthers said.
“But exploration development approvals are absolutely crucial to the WA mining and resources sector being able to provide the extremely significant contributions it makes to State and Federal economies, and communities right across the country.
“Timely and consistent regulatory approvals and processes are also integral to major companies and investors being willing to make the types of funding commitments required to develop large-scale projects.
“There are currently $156 billion in projects in the WA resources pipeline and each of these will be a very strong future source of employment and economic benefits for communities across our state if they can be brought to fruition.”