Building Australia's resource wealth
Objective
Maximise benefits from Australia’s minerals and energy resources, now and into the future.
Role
To achieve this objective, Geoscience Australia attracts exploration investment to Australia by building a prospectus of minerals and energy resource potential.
Performance criteria and results
Table 2: Strategic priority: Building Australia’s resource wealth—performance
Exploring for the Future |
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Program deliverable1 |
Result |
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Release of pre-competitive information |
Geoscience Australia released a range of pre-competitive information under its Exploring for the Future program. The release of datasets included:
Pre-competitive geological, geophysical and hydrogeological data collected from groundwater surveys in the Southern Stuart Corridor (Northern Territory), East Kimberley (Northern Territory and Western Australia) and Upper Burdekin (Queensland) regions are being analysed and will be released in 2019–20. |
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Deliver integrated resource assessment for northern Australia |
Geoscience Australia is developing a web portal providing access to minerals, energy and groundwater datasets, science products and decision support tools to guide government, industry and communities. The portal is expected to be available in 2019–20. The portal prototype was demonstrated at venues around Australia, with strong interest from a range of stakeholders. Work has commenced on outreach to users to gather information on the most effective ways to deliver data and decision support tools via the web-based portal. |
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1 Source: 2018–19 Corporate Plan. |
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Energy Pre-competitive Information |
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Program deliverable1 |
Result |
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Deliver geological studies of the evolution and resource potential of onshore and offshore energy systems |
Geoscience Australia signed an agreement for access to commercial-in-confidence 3D seismic data with a multi-client seismic company. The data will be integrated into regional prospectivity studies in offshore north-western Australia, to enable assessment of potential new petroleum systems in the region. The prospectivity assessment of the central North West Shelf progressed and results were promoted to industry at national and international forums. Several pre- competitive data packages were released to industry at the APPEA conference in May 2019, including regional digital surface products and a well folio. Pre-competitive data packages and key findings from the geochemistry studies in the Roebuck Basin were presented and published, providing insight into the petroleum potential of that highly prospective but poorly understood area. Geoscience Australia presented new work on hydrocarbon source rocks, promoting Australia’s resource potential, at the Australian Organic Geochemistry Conference in December 2018. Work on the Lord Howe Rise initiative was completed and data were released via the National Offshore Petroleum Information Management System (NOPIMS) and the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology. This initiative produced deep crustal seismic data across the region and two seismic pre-drill site surveys to scope locations for deep stratigraphic drilling as well as associated environmental data. The results of this work contributed to significant new understanding of the prospectivity of this remote frontier region. |
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Deliver assessments of the energy potential of the Geological and Bioregional Assessment Program |
Geoscience Australia assisted the Department of the Environment and Energy to undertake select unconventional gas play prospectivity assessments in three onshore basins: the Cooper Basin, the Isa Superbasin and the Beetaloo Sub-basin. For each basin, Geoscience Australia developed a Geological and Bioregional Assessments Program region synthesis report, geological report and prospectivity assessment report. All reports are due for publication in 2019–20. |
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Deliver new offshore exploration acreage opportunities from Energy Systems pre-competitive program in annual Offshore Petroleum Exploration Acreage Release |
Under the revised Offshore Petroleum Exploration Acreage Release process, no offshore petroleum exploration acreage was due to be released in 2018–19. In anticipation of the July 2019 acreage release, Geoscience Australia is developing an updated suite of products conveying geological information for all nominated offshore basins where new acreage will be offered. Geoscience Australia is also redeveloping its acreage-related webpages. The improved pages will be launched in July 2019, providing stakeholders with an enhanced opportunity to discover and engage with acreage-related products into the future. All associated seismic and well data are made available through NOPIMS |
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1 Source: 2018–19 Corporate Plan. |
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Minerals Pre-competitive Resource |
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Program deliverable1 |
Result |
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Deliver new pre-competitive data from greenfield undercover regions |
Under the 2017–2022 National Mineral Exploration Strategy, endorsed by the Council of Australian Governments Energy Council, Geoscience Australia collaborated with state and territory government bodies to:
Geoscience Australia also sought expressions of interest from the exploration industry to participate in airborne geophysical infill programs during the AusAEM program. This collaboration model facilitates industry adoption of new technology to explore under cover. Industry contributions have expanded the government’s airborne electromagnetic survey, while in-kind information sharing has led to better understanding of the groundwater and mineral resources at a regional and deposit scale.ivity of those greenfields areas, which have been underexplored due to extensive cover
Geoscience Australia also sought expressions of interest from the exploration industry to participate in airborne geophysical infill programs during the AusAEM program. This collaboration model facilitates industry adoption of new technology to explore under cover. Industry contributions have expanded the government’s airborne electromagnetic survey, while in-kind information sharing has led to better understanding of the groundwater and mineral resources at a regional and deposit scale. |
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Deliver geological studies of the evolution and resource potential of undercover regions to support mineral exploration investment |
Geoscience Australia:
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1 Source: 2018–19 Corporate Plan. |
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Resources Advice and Promotion |
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Program deliverable1 |
Result |
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Deliver geological material to support the Offshore Petroleum Acreage Release |
Geoscience Australia promoted Australia as an attractive exploration destination, nationally and internationally, at petroleum industry events such as the North American Prospect Expo, the Good Oil Conference, and conferences of the South East Asia Petroleum Exploration Society and APPEA, and through planned meetings with petroleum exploration companies. The geological knowledge and products tha support the Offshore Petroleum Exploration Acreage Release processes are integral to such promotions. |
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Deliver technical advice on mineral and energy resources, including the storage of CO2, to the Australian Government |
Geoscience Australia delivered technical advice on mineral and energy resources, including by:
In collaboration with CO2CRC, CSIRO, industry and universities, Geoscience Australia led research on carbon dioxide migration through geological faults. The research aims to improve Australia’s understanding of the potential for fluid migration through faults, including by increasing predictive capacity, modelling and monitoring approaches. This understanding is key to providing support and advice on Australia’s capacity for safe geological storage of carbon dioxide. |
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1 Source: 2018–19 Corporate Plan. |
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Key performance indicator1 |
Target |
2018–19 result |
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Provide advice in relation to the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 within the stated response period |
100% |
100% All advice under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 was provided within the stated response period. |
1 Source: 2018–19 Corporate Plan.
Analysis of performance
Australia’s mineral and energy resources are a major contributor to the nation’s wealth, both economically and socially. Understanding the available resources is a prerequisite for formulating sound policies on resources and land access.
During 2018–19, Geoscience Australia continued to deliver world-class pre-competitive data to industry to attract minerals and energy exploration investment to Australia. Data is also provided to government and communities to sustainably manage groundwater resources.
Since re-entering exploration in Australia in 2017–18, the global mining company Anglo American has continued to acquire mineral exploration leases in previously unexplored areas of western Queensland. The company has publicly credited the excellent pre-competitive geoscientific data supplied by Geoscience Australia and the Geological Survey of Queensland with enabling its evaluation of previously under-explored parts of Australia.
Geoscience Australia supports the Australian Government and its partners in maintaining a regulatory and policy environment to benefit a stable, sustainable national resources sector. The high-quality expert advice, knowledge and information products that the organisation provides inform regulatory processes around establishing and expanding new industries in the sector.
There is a growing, worldwide focus on critical commodities. Australia has many of the minerals that industry requires to manufacture new technologies, such as batteries, solar photovoltaic cells and touch screens. Geoscience Australia’s knowledge and expertise enabled the Australian Government to develop a strategy and prospectus, as well as publications and international promotional activities, for Australia’s critical minerals market.
Visit
https://www.transparency.gov.au/annual-reports/geoscience-australia/reporting-year/2018-2019-14