Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has unveiled Australia’s commitment of $566.1 million towards resources mapping, aimed at bolstering sectors crucial to the green energy transition.
Over a span of 10 years, this substantial investment will furnish data, maps, and tools to guide the resource industry towards new discoveries.
Led by Geoscience Australia, this initiative marks a significant expansion, encompassing offshore areas for the first time, with a particular focus on identifying sites for carbon capture and storage, as well as facilitating clean hydrogen projects.final agreements to fund infrastructure projectsworth $1.3 billion
In his statement, Albanese emphasized the pivotal role of minerals such as lithium, cobalt, nickel, copper, critical minerals, and rare earths in advancing clean energy technologies. He underscored the government’s commitment to facilitating their exploration and extraction, acknowledging their significance in meeting global demand.
This investment, he asserted, aligns with Australia’s vision of emerging as a clean energy superpower, leveraging its inherent strengths and natural resources.
The program aims to empower regional communities, farmers, and First Nations peoples by equipping them with tools to manage land and water resources effectively.
Notably, the Resourcing Australia’s Prosperity (RAP) initiative will extend its mapping efforts to offshore areas, paving the way for potential carbon capture and storage sites, alongside opportunities for clean hydrogen projects. By providing comprehensive insights into the country’s groundwater systems, the program supports climate resilience, agricultural sustainability, and water security for communities and the environment.
Geoscience Australia’s precompetitive data program has already yielded significant discoveries, including deposits of critical minerals essential for clean energy technologies. Recognized as pivotal to the strength of Australia’s resources sector, precompetitive geoscience has been instrumental in driving economic growth and job creation.
Deloitte Access Economics estimates that existing public precompetitive geoscience contributed $76 billion to the Australian economy and supported 80,000 full-time equivalent jobs in 2021-2022 alone. This concerted effort has stimulated a surge in exploration activities, with numerous companies actively exploring vast swathes of Australian territory, covering over 290,000 square kilometers across 569 tenements.