For community

In October 2019, the Minister for Resources announced more ground would be made available for minerals exploration to the east and northeast of Bendigo through a competitive tender. The successful tenders were announced on 29 October 2021.

Covering an area of 1,565 square kilometres, the North Central Victorian Goldfields Ground Release has been divided into four minerals exploration areas (blocks).

Our new approach to minerals exploration is designed to attract companies with a track record of good exploration practices, environmental management and community engagement.

The North Central Victorian Goldfields Ground Release was designed to attract new investment in exploration for gold and other metals in regional Victoria and companies with a track record of good exploration practices, environmental management, and community engagement.

The ground release excludes exploration for coal or gas. By law, minerals exploration and mining are not permitted in National or State Parks or wilderness areas.

Minerals help make everything that provides our modern lifestyle. Mined materials are needed for renewable energy infrastructure and to construct our homes, roads, and hospitals, to build automobiles and aeroplanes, to make computers, televisions, mobile phones, and satellites.

Victoria has a long history of minerals exploration and mining which dates to the 1850s gold rush.

Today, over 50 per cent of Victoria’s land mass is under a minerals exploration licence, yet only 0.02 per cent is under a Mining Licence.

Minerals exploration and mining are also economically important, bringing national and international investment and employment to the State and to the regions.

The North Central Goldfields Ground Release is a key action that helps to implement the Victorian Government’s Minerals Strategy. This strategy is about fostering investment and jobs across regional Victoria.

The tender was for four minerals exploration areas (blocks) in an area east and northeast of Bendigo.

Opened on 29 October 2019, the tender closed on 14 February 2020. The successful tenderers Fosterville Gold Mine (Agnico Eagle) and S2 Resources were announced on 29 October 2021 and, subject to licensing, will gain the exclusive mineral exploration rights for the relevant block(s).

In Victoria, companies normally apply "over the counter" for a minerals exploration licence. A licence is generally issued after Native Title requirements are satisfied, if the company meets minimum requirements set out under the legislation, and if there is no licence already over the area. With the  North Central Goldfields Ground Release, we are taking a strategic approach to the release of ground for exploration in north central Victoria because there is significant international interest and geological data indicating that the area is prospective for gold and other minerals.

Requiring the companies to compete in a tender process allowed us to select the best minerals exploration programs and the most appropriate explorers with good social values and a commitment to working with Traditional Owners, local communities, and landholders.

The successful tenderers Fosterville Gold Mine (Agnico Eagle) and S2 Resources (subject to licensing) will gain the exclusive mineral exploration rights for the relevant block(s).The successful tenderers will still need to pass the minimum legislative requirements, including passing a fit and proper person test, providing evidence of an appropriate exploration work program and demonstrating that they can fund both the work and a rehabilitation bond.

No. Exploration for coal or gas will not be allowed.

In Victoria the Crown owns all minerals. This allows us to give companies permission - through a licensing system - to explore for minerals, on either Crown land or privately owned land. A minerals explorer must have a licence in place before any exploration activities can occur.

Go to Resource Licences near me to find out who holds the exploration or mining licence near you.

The licensed exploration company must have either the informed consent of the landholder or a written registered compensation agreement prior to any exploration activities taking place on privately owned land.

The landholder has the right to negotiate the terms and conditions and any compensation around access to private land.

We have developed a land access consent agreement tool to assist landowners and explorers through this process.

If agreement on land access can’t be reached, the matter can be referred to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) for a determination regarding compensation (but not the right of access – which is bestowed upon licence holders under the legislation).

Fine out more about dispute resolution.

Minerals exploration is good for regional economies. It sees contractors and businesses spending locally on a range of activities including services, accommodation, food, fuel, and equipment.

At a local level, landowners can be directly compensated by explorers for access to their land. This can be in cash or in kind. Also, exploration companies may choose to provide additional contributions, financial or in-kind, even when compensation is not needed.

As part of the tender process, companies who want to secure an exploration licence had to demonstrate they are capable and willing to work closely with landholders and the farming community before a licence is granted.

The Act does not specify whether exploration companies are to pay to access privately held land. This matter is negotiable between the landowner or land occupier and the exploration company.

The Act specifies that compensation is payable to the landowner or occupier for any of the following (provided they arise from exploration work or a proposal to carry out the activity):

• Deprivation of possession of the whole or part of the surface of the land
• Damage to the surface of the land and to any improvements on the land
• Access from one paddock to another is severed by exploration works
• Loss of amenity including recreational and conservation values
• Loss of opportunity to make planned improvements
• Any decrease in market value of the owner’s or occupier’s interest in the land
• Any reasonable incidental expense in obtaining or moving to replace land (when required).

The Act does not state that these are only factors for which compensation is payable. Additional items can be negotiated between the parties.

Compensation is not payable for the value of the minerals, nor is it a prerequisite for landholder consent.

Compensation is usually agreed by negotiation between the landholder and the exploration licensee.

Compensation can include a financial payment but may also involve work in lieu of a financial payment (such as new fencing or road grading).

Compensation agreements must be in writing and lodged with the mining registrar for registration.

We recommend you seek legal advice before you enter into a compensation agreement.

Any amount of compensation agreed to be paid is not affected by any subsequent change in the ownership or occupancy of land. New owners or occupiers cannot seek further compensation.

The compensation agreement remains with the land not the landholder.

The exploration company is required to have public liability insurance. This insurance must cover all work authorised under the licence and must always be valid while work occurs under the licence.

Water is subject to well-established controls allowing for a variety of uses, including a very robust regulatory framework that considers impacts on the environment. Conditions for protection of groundwater are imposed on an exploration or mining licence.

The Code of Practice for Mineral Exploration sets out the recommended practices for drill operation and bore construction, managing aquifers, operating sumps and decommissioning drill holes. Once sampling and testing activities have been completed, drill holes are to be decommissioned in accordance with Victoria’s Guidelines for environmental management in exploration and mining.

Causing groundwater to be polluted is an offence under the Environment Protection Act 1970.

Minerals exploration companies require an approved Work Plan from the department if their exploration activities extend beyond what is considered low impact. As part of the Work Plan the licensee is required to describe the strategies they will use to safeguard the environment and other features including a Trust for Nature Covenant, which might be vulnerable to exploration activities.

The department can refer these Work Plans to the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP) and water authorities and others for consideration of the potential impact of exploration against the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act, the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Act, Water Act, and so on. Referral agencies like DELWP can request a change in the Work Plan prior to it being approved for implementation.

It is an offence under the Aboriginal Heritage Act 2006 to knowingly, recklessly, or negligently, undertake an action that harms or is likely to harm an Aboriginal place or object without a Cultural Heritage Permit or an approved Cultural Heritage Management Plan in place.

Most minerals exploration activities have no or low impacts on the ground. These include aerial surveying, soil sampling, testing, mapping, and analysis, and in some cases, drilling. As better knowledge of mineralisation is achieved and as prospectivity improves, drilling becomes more targeted, and the distribution of drill holes narrows (more drill holes per square kilometre). Licensed minerals explorers require a Work Plan, approved by Earth Resources Regulation, when activity exceeds low impact thresholds.

There is no financial cost to lodge a tender. The tender is merit based – tenderers are evaluated on their demonstrated minerals exploration capability, their proposed minerals exploration work program, financial viability, and their commitment to responsible exploration.

Responsible exploration includes the company’s demonstrated experience in and intentions to collaborate with Traditional Owners, engagement with landholders and local communities, respecting the environment and sustainability and local content.

Two companies are applying are in the application phase for minerals exploration licences for the North Central Victorian Goldfields ground release. Fosterville Gold Mine (Agnico Eagle) has been allocated blocks 1, 2, 3 and S2 Resources has Block 4. Explorers were permitted to tender for more than one block.

Each licensee has exclusive rights over a specific geographic area over a specified period, generally five years. A licensee may choose to seek an extension to the licence but is required to relinquish parcels of their licence area (25 per cent - year 2, an additional 35 per cent - year 4, an additional 20 per cent - year 7 and an additional 10 per cent in year 10).

Victorian legislation prohibits minerals exploration and mining in National Parks (e.g. the Greater Bendigo or Grampians National Park), State Parks (e.g. Kooyoora State Park and Mt Arapiles State Park), and in wilderness areas. Exploration is also prohibited in the You Yangs Regional Park and the Mitchell River Floodplain.

Our Earth Resources Regulation unit is responsible for setting and reviewing rehabilitation bonds for exploration and mining companies as required by the Mineral Resources (Sustainable Development) Act 1990 (MRSD Act).

A rehabilitation bond is a financial security which must be provided by an operator prior to commencing work. This is to ensure rehabilitation can be undertaken by us should the operator be unable to meet their rehabilitation obligations.

The likelihood of minerals exploration projects leading to mining is very low. In Victoria only about one in 300 exploration projects leads to an operating mine.

The low conversion rates from exploration to mining development reflects the difficulty in discovering a minerals deposit that is commercially viable. First, a minerals exploration licensee must find a deposit, an accumulation of minerals which is sufficiently large and in a concentration that might have economic value.

Second, a licensee must determine if it might be economically viable to extract the deposit. This in part depends upon the type and depth of the cover rock. But just like the agricultural produce grown in Victoria, much also depends on production costs, commodity prices, transport costs, international supply competition and demand, as well as exchange rates.

To build and operate a mine, a company needs to apply for and be awarded a mining licence and gain all the approvals required under legislation.

Detailed, stringent approvals processes apply, including the requirement for detailed studies to assess potential environmental, social and economic impacts. Applicants are also required to outline how these potential impacts will be managed and to consult extensively with local communities.

The mine licensee may be required to prepare an Environment Effects Statement (EES). An EES usually contains a description of the existing environment; potential impacts and proposed control measures; a proposed monitoring program; and an outline of public and stakeholder consultation.

The approvals process can take several years. On average, the time between early-stage minerals exploration and mining commencement is between 15 and 20 years, with an average of 12 years.

If commercially viable mineral resources are found, the exploration licensee may apply for a mining licence.

The granting of the mining licence transfers mineral rights from the Crown to the licensee, but it does not give the licensee authority to carry out mining operations.

Mining can only begin when a suite of regulatory approvals has been gained, including planning permission from Department of Environment Land, Water and Planning (DELWP) and councils, work plan approval from the Earth Resources Regulation, the lodging a rehabilitation bond and securing landholder agreements.

Planning permissions may require an Environmental Effects Statement to assess the likely environmental, social and economic impacts of mining and how these will be mitigated by the company.

Applications for a mining licence must be advertised and members of the public are given an opportunity to make submissions. The licensee must negotiate with the landholder regarding future operations.

Minerals exploration companies must have a minerals exploration licence, issued by the Earth Resources Regulation allowing them to undertake a range of low impact exploration activities, including drilling.

Under a Minerals Exploration Licence the licensee must ensure all reasonable measures are taken to minimise the impacts of drilling operations and that the operations are conducted in a manner that ensures that the environmental values and the beneficial uses of the ground water systems are conserved and protected.

The licensee must:

• prevent contamination of aquifers from drilling operations
• ensure a temporary cap is fitted when a drill hole is to be left open overnight or longer
• keep accurate records of decommissioning procedures for future reference, and to demonstrate that the drill holes have been satisfactorily plugged
• not drill within 200 metres of a named waterway or within 100 metres of an irrigation channel.

If a minerals exploration company intends to drill a groundwater bore for water supplies, drainage, dewatering or groundwater monitoring, it must also be licensed under the Water Act 1989.

The activities of licensed minerals exploration companies are governed by more than 20 Acts and Regulations. Legislation which helps safeguard the things important to a community, include the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act, Water Act, Aboriginal Heritage Act, Environmental Protection Act, Catchment and Land Protection Act.

Most minerals exploration activities have minimal or no impact on the ground. This includes, soil and rock sampling, stream water sampling, in-field and aerial surveying and in some cases, drilling.

Exploration companies must obtain a work plan approval when their activities are likely to exceed certain threshold limits which define low impact exploration. These threshold limits relate to matters such as waterways, flora and fauna, native vegetation, and cultural heritage.

To obtain a work plan, the company exploration must describe its exploration activities in detail, identify each of the environmental and other risks posed by the activity and outline the strategies that will be employed to mitigate those risks.

Earth Resources Regulation assess these work plans and may refer matters to other agencies for assessment.

The tender structure allowed us to raise the bar on the environmental practices of licensees by requiring companies to demonstrate their strong commitment to, and track record of, responsible exploration.

The tender required companies to describe their approach for environmental management as part of their proposed exploration program, which was assessed by an independent evaluation panel.

Additionally, companies were evaluated on their environment policies and environmental risk assessment tools and procedures; how environmental management controls are communicated to employees and contractors; and whether they have had any environmental non-compliance issues or breaches in the past five years.

In addition, the government’s Code of Practice for Mineral Exploration provides practical guidance to explorers about how exploration work should be conducted in Victoria to meet regulatory requirements and environmental standards.

Minerals exploration licensees must ensure Aboriginal cultural heritage is not harmed because of their work. Licensees must prepare a Cultural Heritage Management Plan for any areas of cultural heritage sensitivity.

We are engaging closely with local communities across the north central Victoria goldfields ground release area to:

• hear views about minerals exploration
• help locals understand more about the region’s geology
• explain how minerals exploration is often low impact and targeted
• describe how minerals exploration is regulated
• improve knowledge about the tender and licensing processes and landholder rights.

Five community information sessions were held in November and December 2019 throughout towns across the region: Lockington, Rochester, Elmore, Goornong and Axedale.

We are keen to hear the views of farmers and other landholders, community groups, individual businesses and residents.

Since the beginning of June 2019, we have spoken with more than 50 community and farming leaders, met with Councillors and senior executives from three local councils, and consulted with Traditional Owners. We also met with Agriculture Victoria, Department Environment Land Water and Planning and Regional Development Victoria.

We also met with more than 500 local landowners at the Elmore Field Days to discuss the ground release, our land access tool and the safeguards for groundwater and the environment.

We listened to ideas about how to improve relationships between exploration companies and communities on land access issues. We’ve also gained insights into how new exploration investment might help boost local economies.

Comprehensive engagement with landholders, community groups and interested individuals continued throughout the tender evaluation process. This included attendance at agricultural field days, as well as briefings with small groups and individuals when requested by community members.

Minerals exploration and development have the potential to bring jobs and other economic benefits to regional communities.

The exploration phase typically generates demand for the provision of local services, such as earth moving, equipment hire, accommodation, fuel and meals to support specialist exploration contractors.

If exploration is successful and a mining operation is approved, income and investment generated can be significant.

For example, At the end of 2021 Fosterville Gold Mine (Agnico Eagle) supported 647 highly skilled jobs. Eight out of 10 employees live in the Greater Bendigo region. Since 2005, Fosterville has also donated $418,600 through its community grants and sponsorship programs.

The minerals exploration and mining industry is a significant contributor to employment and economic wealth for the region. In 2019, minerals exploration licence holders within the north central Victoria council areas spent $18.2 million on local exploration activities, while the mining industry spent $301.6 million on goods and services in the Bendigo municipality alone.

Exploration, mining, and agriculture are significant industries for regional Victoria, and both readily co-exist to support jobs and generate export revenue. Licensed exploration activity is currently taking place right across north central Victoria, with many of these tenement areas over prime agricultural land.

Victoria is Australia’s largest producer and exporter of food and fibre products, and we enjoy a good reputation for quality, safety and reliability. Victoria’s strong regulatory environment maintains this reputation while enabling mining to contribute to productivity and employment.

Biosecurity is a matter that minerals exploration licensees are required to address. Licensees must adhere to any biosecurity protocols that have been adopted on private or Crown land.

The licensee must ensure all soil imported into the exploration licence area is free of disease and noxious weeds. They must also take all reasonable measures to minimise the spread of noxious weeds, pest animals and plant diseases while undertaking exploration activities.