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Exploration reporting
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Overview

Reports are required to be submitted for all authorities under section 163C of the Mining Act 1992 and section 97C of the Petroleum (Onshore) Act 1991. The Regulations make provision for the content, form and lodgement of the reports.

For prospecting authorities (exploration licences, assessment leases, petroleum exploration licences and petroleum assessment leases), the Exploration guideline: Annual activity reporting for prospecting titles (PDF, 319.51 KB) sets out the requirements for annual activity reporting. Under this guideline, environmental and rehabilitation reports are to be submitted electronically to the NSW Resources Regulator using the Regulator Portal.  Community consultation reports should be prepared per the Code of practice for community consultation.

For mining leases (mining leases and petroleum production leases), exploration reporting is mandatory in accordance with the relevant legislation. The Secretary has gazetted an exemption from a requirement to prepare and lodge a report for holders of a mining lease in respect of an ancillary mining activity or activities only under the Mining Act 1992. 

Compulsory online reporting

Exploration reports and associated geoscientific data must be submitted electronically using the Titles Management System(TMS). TMS is an online report preparation and lodgement facility.

The TMS Guide - Lodging geological reports, data and requests in TMS (PDF, 3.91 MB) provides detailed instructions for lodging exploration and redacted exploration reports, geoscientific data and applications for extensions or exemptions from reporting.

Large data files (over 1 GB) may be submitted using NSW Resources' secure large file transfer application Large File Exchange Service (LaFix) or contact mining.explorationassessment@regional.nsw.gov.au to supply large files via an alternate file transfer application or digital device.

Exploration reporting - Mining Act

Annual, partial relinquishment and final reports are required to be submitted for all authorities under section 163C of the Mining Act 1992, unless exempted by an order or reporting is explicitly not required in accordance with the conditions of an authority. 

The guide Exploration reporting: A guide for reporting on exploration and prospecting in New South Wales (PDF, 497.32 KB) specifies the mandatory structure, content and data format requirements for reports.

Reports should present the technical results and geological interpretation of exploration and prospecting activities carried out under an authority.

To assist authority holders in meeting their reporting requirements, optional templates for annual, partial relinquishment and final reports are available for download below. Authority holders may also compile their report online using the optional online report building tool available within TMS. 

The use of a current mineral exploration reporting template is mandatory for submission of exploration data (drilling, geochemistry and pXRF data) for mineral groups 1-6, 10 and 11. These templates ensure that data conforms to the National Standard ‘Australian requirements for the submission of digital exploration data’. There are 2 current templates, v4.6 (preferred) and v4.5 (previous format), downloadable below. 

The new V4.6 template includes inbuilt data validation and file creation (export) functions, allowing the creation of files that have been validated and comply with the department's requirements for submission. The v4.6 template is supported by a user guide to assist explorers in using the template to compile and validate data and files for submission. To further assist users in understanding the application of the template v4.6, a template with example data is available. A colour contrast version of the template is also available.

Data templates:

Report templates:

Read frequently asked questions. (PDF, 294.05 KB)

For further assistance with reporting and lodgement please email mining.explorationassessment@regional.nsw.gov.au

Annual report release - Mining Act

The NSW Government is committed to making historical exploration data available to support new investment in exploration to meet the growing global demand for minerals. NSW Resources meets this commitment by publicly releasing annual reports with associated data under the Annual Report Release Policy.

Subject to some limited exceptions, annual reports now remain confidential for five years after lodgement (section 365 of the Mining Act 1992, clause 64 of the Mining Regulation). This is also known as the ‘Sunset Clause’. 

A list of reports eligible for release under the annual report release policy is published each year. 

Before historical reports (those lodged before 1 January 2022) are released, authority holders have the opportunity to redact personal, proprietary and/or commercially sensitive information from an annual report. Authority holders have until 30 September to submit requests for redaction, and until 31 March of the following year to submit redacted reports. 

The Annual report release policy (PDF, 390.66 KB), outlines the framework for the release of annual reports.

The Annual report redaction guide (PDF, 313.35 KB) provides further details about the redaction process.

View the list of reports eligible for release (XLSX, 518.29 KB) published 1 October 2021, for reports due prior to 1 June 2016 and request a copy of a report or request to redact.

View the list of reports eligible for release (XLSX, 282.66 KB) published 1 February 2022 for reports due after 1 June 2016 and prior to 1 June 2017 and request a copy of a report or request to redact.

View the list of reports eligible for release (XLSX, 53.24 KB) published 1 February 2023 for reports due after 1 June 2017 and prior to 1 June 2018 and request a copy of a report or request to redact.

View the list of reports eligible for release (XLSX, 206.1 KB) published 28 March 2024 for reports lodged prior to 1 June 2019, including new report types included in the second stage release. This includes previously unreleased reports from exploration licences and assessment leases for mineral groups 1-6 & 10, and exploration licence reports for mineral group 8.

Read frequently asked questions (PDF, 294.05 KB) for further information.

For further assistance with the redaction process please email redaction@regional.nsw.gov.au

Exploration reporting - Petroleum (Onshore) Act

The guide Exploration guideline: Onshore petroleum reporting and data submission (PDF, 717.52 KB) specifies the structure, content and data format requirements reports submitted for authorities under the Petroleum (Onshore) Act. 

All reports are required to be submitted electronically using the Titles Management System (TMS).

To assist authority holders in meeting their reporting requirements, templates for submitting specific information are available for download below. 

The Exploration guideline: Onshore petroleum reporting and data submission is currently being reviewed. A revised guideline will be consulted on and published in late 2024. 

For further assistance with reporting and lodgement please email: mining.explorationassessment@regional.nsw.gov.au