South Australian Consolidated Acts South Australian Consolidated Acts30AB—Subsequent exploration licence
(1) The Minister may,
on the expiration of an exploration licence the term or aggregate term of
which was five years, grant to the licensee an exploration
licence (a "subsequent exploration licence") over the area of land, or a part
of the area of land, to which the former licence applied.
(1a) An application
for a subsequent exploration licence must be made to the Minister in a manner
and form determined by the Minister at least 3 months before the
expiration of an exploration licence the term or aggregate term of which was
5 years.
(1b) If an application
for a subsequent exploration licence is not decided before the date on which
the immediately preceding exploration licence is due to expire or if the
Minister, on application by a person entitled to apply for a
subsequent exploration licence (or who would be so entitled but for the
expiration of the licence) or on the Minister's own motion, in the Minister's
absolute discretion, extends the date by which an application must be made,
the licence continues in operation (or, in an appropriate case, is revived)
until the application is decided and, if a subsequent exploration licence is
granted, the granting of the subsequent exploration licence dates from the
date on which the immediately preceding exploration licence would, but for
this subsection, have expired.
(2) An application for
a subsequent exploration licence must include the following:
(a) a
statement outlining the exploratory operations that the licensee has carried
out in pursuance of the licence since it was granted (or since it was renewed,
if the licence has been renewed), showing the expenditure incurred in carrying
out those operations; and
(b) a
statement that the licensee will—
(i)
carry out exploratory operations of a kind and to an
extent agreed between the Minister and the licensee; and
(ii)
spend an amount of money agreed between the Minister and
the licensee in carrying out those operations.
(3) The holder of a
subsequent exploration licence must spend (when considered on an annual basis)
at least an amount of money agreed between the Minister and the licensee in
carrying out operations under the licence.
(4) However—
(a) the
Minister may, subject to any terms and conditions as the Minister thinks fit,
exempt a licensee from the application of subsection (2) or (3); and
(b) the
Minister may not, in entering into an agreement with a licensee under
subsection (3) require the licensee to spend—
(i)
if the subsequent exploration licence is granted over the
area of land to which the former licence applied—more than double the
amount agreed between the Minister and the licensee in relation to the last
year of the former licence;
(ii)
if the subsequent exploration licence is granted over a
part of the area of land to which the former licence applied—more than
an amount that bears the same proportion to double the amount agreed between
the Minister and the licensee in relation to the last year of the former
licence as the area of land over which the subsequent exploration licence is
granted bears to the area of the former licence.
(5) To avoid doubt,
section 30A extends to a subsequent exploration licence under this
section.