Round 24 of EIS co-funded drilling program offers $6.35 million to 51 projects
| Date: | Wednesday, 20 October 2021 |
|---|
- Search for battery minerals dominates this round
- Regions throughout Western Australia set to benefit
The successful applicants for Round 24 of the Exploration Incentive Scheme (EIS) co-funded drilling program and the second co-funded Energy Analysis Program (EAP) have been announced.
A total of $6.35 million in grants is being offered to 51 exploration projects, while six EAP studies will receive a total of $245,000.
More than 35 per cent of the drilling projects will be looking for battery minerals with 73 per cent of those searching for nickel. Other battery commodities on the companies’ exploration list include manganese, lithium, tantalum, rare earth elements and cobalt.
The EAP grants were offered for core analysis and seismic reprocessing studies across the Carnarvon, Perth and Canning basins.
The co-funded drilling program encourages innovative exploration in greenfields and under-explored areas of Western Australia, while the EAP promotes the re-analysis of existing data to better understand petroleum and geothermal systems.
The next round of the EIS opens on February 7, 2022. For more information, visit http://www.dmp.wa.gov.au/Geological-Survey/Exploration-Incentive-Scheme-1428.aspx
Comments attributed to Mines and Petroleum Minister Bill Johnston:
“The race to find battery minerals underscores the McGowan Government’s goal to position WA as a global powerhouse in the export of future battery minerals and materials.
“The EIS has supported a number of major discoveries, with each of them increasing the odds of opening new mines and creating jobs.
“Rapidly changing technology means we now have greater knowledge and tools to find out more from existing samples in our core libraries.”
