Programme of Work applications increase by 50 per cent since January 2018
| Date: | Thursday, 28 June 2018 |
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The Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety (DMIRS) has seen a 50 per cent increase in Programme of Work (PoW) applications since the start of the year suggesting mineral exploration activity in Western Australia is on the rise.
DMIRS Acting Executive Director, Resource and Environmental Compliance Division, Karen Caple, said the department usually receives on average 200 applications each month, and so far this year the average has increased to 300 applications per month.
“In May alone we received 366 applications, about an 80 per cent increase, which is very encouraging and indicates the buoyant nature of the minerals exploration sector in Western Australia,” Ms Caple said.
“The increase in PoW applications is placing some pressure on the approval processing targets, and stakeholders may experience a slight delay in processing times.
“Our target is to process 80 per cent of applications received within 30 business days, and currently we are above the target with 83 per cent of applications finalised within the timeline for the April quarter.
“We want to reassure industry that plans are in place to address the additional workload and the department will continue to process in order of the date received to ensure applicants are treated fairly.”
