Queensland Consolidated Acts Queensland Consolidated Acts(1) The holder of a mining lease may apply to surrender the mining lease or any part of the land comprised therein at any time before the expiration of its term.
(2) The holder of a mining lease who desires to surrender a mining lease or any part of the land comprised therein shall lodge with the mining registrar—
(a) a notice of surrender in the approved form; and
(b) for the surrender of all the land comprised in the mining lease—
(i) a properly completed royalty return, unless it has already been lodged under section 320(4); and
(ii) either—
(A) the royalty payable to the State under section 320(3)(a), unless it has already been paid; or
(B) evidence that the royalty has been paid to another person entitled to the royalty under section 320(3)(b); and
(c) the fee prescribed under a regulation.
(3) The mining registrar must, within 5 business days after a notice of surrender is lodged, give a copy of it to the EPA administering authority.
(4) The Minister may, by written notice, give the mining lease holder directions about carrying out improvement restoration for the mining lease.
(5) A purported surrender of a mining lease or of any part of the land comprised in a mining lease shall not be effective unless—
(a) the holder has complied with this section; and
(b) the Minister consents to the surrender.
(6) However, the Minister may give the consent only if the Minister is satisfied—
(a) the holder has complied with the condition to carry out improvement restoration for the mining lease; and
(b) the relevant environmental authority (mining lease) has been cancelled or surrendered under the Environmental Protection Act.
(7) If a mining lease is surrendered for only part of the land the subject of the lease—
(a) the mining lease continues in force for the land not surrendered; and
(b) details of the surrender must be—
(i) recorded in the appropriate register; and
(ii) if an instrument of lease has been issued—endorsed on the instrument of lease by the mining registrar.
(8) Upon a surrender of a mining lease, all adjustments between the holder and the Crown in respect of the payment of rental, fees and other moneys shall be at the discretion of the Minister.
(9) Where any moneys are specified pursuant to subsection (8) as a debt due to the Crown, the Minister may direct that the security deposited in accordance with section 277 may be utilised for payment thereof.
(10) Nothing in this section shall prevent the Crown from recovering moneys from a person specified in subsection (8) as liable to pay and unpaid (whether directly or through utilisation of the security deposit) by action in the Land Court.
(11) In a proceeding for the recovery of an amount owing to the State under this Act, a certificate signed by the chief executive stating the amount of the debt is evidence of the amount of the debt.
(12) Where, at the time when the holder of a mining lease purports to surrender the mining lease or a part of the land comprised therein, that holder duly makes application for a new mining claim or mining lease in respect of the whole or part of the land comprised in the current mining lease, the purported surrender shall take effect immediately prior to the grant of the new mining claim or mining lease.
(13) Nothing in section 232 shall prevent a holder of a mining lease, at the time the holder surrenders the mining lease or part of the land comprised in the mining lease, from applying for the grant of a mining lease over the whole or part of the land comprised in the surrendered mining lease and the grant of the mining lease applied for.
(14) A surrender of a mining lease (other than a surrender referred to in subsection (12)) shall take effect on the day next following its acceptance by the Minister.