EIS Government co-funded Exploration Drilling

The Co-funded Exploration Drilling Program is a flagship program of the Exploration Incentive Scheme (EIS). It is a competitive program, open for applications twice a year, which offers up to a 50 per cent refund for innovative exploration drilling projects, capped at specific amounts.

EIS co-funded drilling in the Eucla
EIS Co-funded drilling in the Eucla

Applications for grants for exploration drilling to be undertaken in 2023-24 Round 27 are now closed.

Applications for Round 28 (drilling from 1 December 2023 to 30 November 2024) will be open 7 August 2023.

Refund capped values have increased and deep-hole project criteria have changed for Round 25 and beyond.

Co-funding in application categories is up to 50 per cent of direct drilling costs, these are now capped at:

  • $220,000 for one or two deep hole(s) application (was $200,000 for one deep hole)
  • $180,000 for a multihole application (was $150,000)
  • $40,000 for a prospector application (was $30,000)

Co-funding will be available for exploration drilling only. The following will not be eligible for co-funding:

  • resource definition drilling
  • appraisal, stimulation and development drilling
  • applicants should note that the government will not support the development of new uranium mines

The grant process is competitive, with marks assigned to your responses to the criteria (detailed in the application forms). Applications are ranked according to the total marks gained and grants offered until exhaustion of available funding.

Co-funded drilling Round timetable

Co-funded drilling Round timetable

Information for applicants

The grants are paid to successful applicants in two tranches. Once the drilling project is completed, explorers are eligible for a refund of 80 per cent of the grant on submission of the interim report, with the final 20 per cent refund available on submission of the final report.

Information about the application process is contained in Advice for applicants which should be read before applying.

Full details of the funding process are detailed in the Guidelines for submission of applications December 2023–November 2024, Round 28.

If successful, applicants will be expected to abide by the conditions set out in the Funding agreement document, Round 28.

Where applicants are not the tenement holder, the tenement holder must agree to the conditions under which co-funding is offered Tenement owner agreement.

Funding will only be offered to those Applicants holding, or having access to, a granted mining tenement or petroleum title. For pending tenements or titles, see Guidelines document section 6.

Drilling must be conducted according to land access and environmental procedures for Western Australian mining tenements or petroleum, or geothermal titles.

Important update to all appli

Important update to all applicants: The EIS co-funding exploration drilling program will not support applications where proposed drilling intersects a File Notation Area (FNA) with a purpose for the creation of conservation areas (e.g. National parks) under the State Government’s Plan for Our Parks initiative. FNA’s can be found on the following DMIRS databases: GeoVIEW.WA (under Special Category Lands), Data and Software centre (under Special Category Lands) and Tengraph web.

Online Application process

The current round is now CLOSED.

The system will close to Round 28 will open 7 August 2023.

Apply for co-funding General application

Apply for co-funding Prospector application

Current successful applicants

Co-funded exploration drilling R27, 2023–24 locations - 1157 Kb

Co-funded exploration drilling R27, 2023–24 locations

Co-funded exploration drilling R27, 2023–24 successful applicants - 485 Kb

Co-funded exploration drilling R27, 2023–24 successful applicants

Previous co-funded drilling successful applications

Co-funded exploration drilling R26, 2023 locations - 784 Kb

Co-funded exploration drilling R26, 2023 locations.

Co-funded exploration drilling R26, 2023 successful applicants - 114 Kb

Co-funded exploration drilling R26, 2023 successful applicants

Co-funded exploration drilling R25, 2022-23 successful applicants - 486 Kb

Co-funded exploration drilling R25, 2022-23 successful applicants

Co-funded exploration drilling R25, 2022-23 locations - 1158 Kb

Co-funded exploration drilling R25, 2022-23 locations

Co-funded exploration drilling R24, 2021-22 locations - 1159 Kb

Co-funded exploration drilling R24, 2021-22 locations

Co-funded exploration drilling R24, 2021-22 successful applicants - 486 Kb

Co-funded exploration drilling R24, 2021-22 successful applicants

Co-funded exploration drilling R23, 2021-22 locations - 1149 Kb

Co-funded exploration drilling R23, 2021-22 locations

Co-funded exploration drilling R23, 2021-22 successful applicants - 480 Kb

Co-funded exploration drilling R23, 2021-22 successful applicants

Co-funded exploration drilling R22, 2020 locations - 1173 Kb

Co-funded exploration drilling R22, 2020 locations

Co-funded exploration drilling R22, 2020 successful applicants - 484 Kb

Co-funded exploration drilling R22, 2020 successful applicants

Co-funded exploration drilling R21, 2020 locations - 1763 Kb

Co-funded exploration drilling R21, 2020 locations

Co-funded exploration drilling R21, 2020 successful applicants - 557 Kb

Co-funded exploration drilling R21, 2020 successful applicants

Co-funded exploration drilling R20, 2020 locations - 1156 Kb

Co-funded exploration drilling R20, 2020 locations

Co-funded exploration drilling R20, 2020 successful applicants - 485 Kb

Co-funded exploration drilling R20, 2020 successful applicants

Co-funded exploration drilling R19, 2019-20 locations - 1043 Kb

Co-funded exploration drilling R19, 2019-20 locations

Co-funded exploration drilling R19, 2019-20 successful applicants - 440 Kb

Co-funded exploration drilling R19, 2019-20 successful applicants

Co-funded exploration drilling R18, 2019 locations - 1042 Kb

Co-funded exploration drilling R18, 2019 locations

Co-funded exploration drilling R18, 2019 successful applicants - 440 Kb

Co-funded exploration drilling R18, 2019 successful applicants

Co-funded exploration drilling R17, 2018-19 locations - 1172 Kb

Co-funded exploration drilling R17, 2018-19 locations

Co-funded exploration drilling R17, 2018-19 successful applicants - 490 Kb

Co-funded exploration drilling R17, 2018-19 successful applicants

Co-funded exploration drilling R16, 2018 successful applicants - 466 Kb

Co-funded exploration drilling R16, 2018 successful applicants

Co-funded exploration drilling R16, 2018 locations - 1981 Kb

Cofunded exploration drilling R16, 2018 locations

Co-funded exploration drilling R15, 2017-18 locations - 736 Kb

Co-funded government - Industry drilling round 15, 2017/18 locations

Co-funded exploration drilling R15, 2017-18 successful applicants - 255 Kb

Co-funded exploration drilling R15, 2017-18 successful applicants

Co-funded government – Industry drilling round 14, 2017 locations - 478 Kb

Co-funded government – Industry drilling round 14, 2017 locations

Co-funded Exploration Drilling R14, 2017 successful applicants - 86 Kb

Co-funded Exploration Drilling R14 2017 successful applicants

Co-funded government – Industry drilling round 13, 2016/17 locations - 909 Kb

Co-funded government – Industry drilling round 13, 2016/17

Co-funded Exploration Drilling R13, 2016/17 successful applicants - 88 Kb

Co-funded Exploration Drilling R13, 2016/17

Current drilling projects – Round 10 locations - 16703 Kb

EIS Approved Sites R10 Map

EIS R10 CoFunded Drilling Projects - 54 Kb

EIS R10 CoFunded Drilling Projects

Current drilling projects – R10 - 54 Kb

EIS Co-funded Drilling Round 10 2015

Current drilling projects – R11 - 50 Kb

Co-funded Drilling R 11, 2015-16

Current drilling projects – Round 11 locations - 431 Kb

R11 Location Successful Projects

Co-funded Exploration Drilling R12, 2016 successful applicants - 42 Kb

Co-funded Exploration Drilling R12, 2016

Co-funded government – Industry drilling round 12, 2016 locations - 582 Kb

Co-funded government – Industry drilling round 12, 2016

Round 10 Successful applicants - 75 Kb

Previous Co-funded Drilling Successful Applications - Round 10

Round 9 Successful applicants - 116 Kb

Previous Co-funded Drilling Successful Applications - Round 9

Round 8 Successful applicants - 39 Kb

Previous Co-funded Drilling Successful Applications - Round 8

Round 7 successful applications - 44 Kb

Previous Co-funded Drilling Successful Applications - Round 7

Round 6 Successful applicants - 28 Kb

Previous Co-funded Drilling Successful Applications - Round 6

Round 5 Successful applicants - 45 Kb

Previous Co-funded Drilling Successful Applications - Round 5

Round 4 Successful applicants - 44 Kb

Previous Co-funded Drilling Successful Applications - Round 4

Round 3 Successful applications - 35 Kb

Previous Co-funded Drilling Successful Applications - Round 3

Round 2 successful applicants - 44 Kb

Previous Co-funded Drilling Successful Applications - Round 2

Round 1 Successful applicants - 28 Kb

Previous Co-funded Drilling Successful Applications - Round 1

Contact
For more information contact:
EIS@dmirs.wa.gov.au
Ph: 92223410