New Frontiers
The New Frontiers initiative is an exploration enhancement to further stimulate mineral and petroleum investment in under-explored terranes. This will build on the successes of the Exploration NSW initiative.
The second phase of the New Frontiers initiative constitutes a three year budget enhancement of A$16.5m to continue the government's two year, A$8m program of pre-competitive funding of geophysical surveys, data compilation, mapping, data interpretation and data delivery.
The New Frontiers initiative brings a new focus to exploration in NSW, adopting the themes 'New Frontiers', 'New Dimensions' and 'New Energy'. Minerals and petroleum programs will address these themes.
New Frontiers Minerals Program
This program will focus on applying new technologies and interpretative processes to the remote and under-explored regions of the state. These leading edge geophysical, geochemical and modelling technologies will lower risk and challenge the exploration frontier.
New Frontiers will build on the successes of Exploration NSW and focus on two frontier terranes in western NSW with potential for new mineral resources. Government geoscience programs in these under-explored areas will generate new exploration opportunities.
Thomson Orogen Project
The Thomson Orogen Project assesses the exploration potential of the Thomson Orogen in NSW. The project includes seismic, gravity, regional geochemistry, drilling, 3D interpretation of rock units and 3D modelling of mineral systems. Results will be released in 2008.
Stawell-Bendigo Terranes Project
These gold rich terranes extend into NSW, as interpreted in the Geological Survey of NSW publication Quarterly Notes 118 publication.
The Stawell-Bendigo Terranes Project focuses on rock packages with potential to host gold-rich mineral systems. The project also includes teleseismic, gravity, drilling, geophysical interpretation of subsurface units/structures and 3D modelling.
Geoscience mapping projects
Regional mapping campaigns in the Koonenberry-Tibooburra and Cobar-Bourke regions has contributed to a better understanding of the geology and mineral potential of frontier areas. Further mapping and research is planned for these regions to assist exploration targeting.
Broken Hill project
A series of projects have been undertaken in the Broken Hill region. Current projects include: interpretive lithological mapping, baseline geochemistry and lithogeochemical vectoring to Broken Hill-type lead-zinc-silver mineralisation. These projects contribute to the Broken Hill Exploration Initiative (BHEI) which is a collaborative research effort by the NSW Department of Primary Industries, Primary Industries South Australia, and Geoscience Australia. The focus is to increase the exploration potential and reduce exploration risk in the Proterozoic rocks of the Curnamona Province, by increased understanding of the metal potential and geodynamic processes controlling mineralisation.
Other projects
The New Frontiers initiative will also focus on resolving the 3-dimensional architecture of our key mineral provinces through application of advanced technologies including seismic, detailed gravity surveys, drilling, and advanced 3D modelling and imaging. This 3D mapping is required to encourage exploration at greater depth in our major mineral provinces such as Broken Hill.
National and international marketing of NSW exploration opportunities, as well as geoscience information delivery via advanced web-based systems will also feature in New Frontiers.
Advanced information systems technologies will be applied to provide high quality geoscience information and knowledge, especially 3D geological models, to the global industry.
New Frontiers Petroleum Program
The New Frontiers Petroleum Program is committed to further stimulate industry investment and provide pre-competitive geoscience data in order to maximise exploration of all energy resources in NSW. The Petroleum Geoscience group of the Coal & Petroleum Development branch accomplishes these via the:
- identification and evaluation of frontier and under-explored petroleum basins;
- validation of untested traps and play fairways;
- identification and exploration of clean alternative energy sources such as geothermal and deeper coal seam gas; and
- search for geological storages for carbon dioxide.
Seed data acquired from projects during the first 2 years of the New Frontiers initiative are aimed at driving and supporting the next exploration focus towards a state-wide assessment of new alternative energy resources. For example, the new 2D seismic data acquired by NSW DPI along the Hunter-Mooki Thrust has imaged the sub-thrust structures capable of hosting large petroleum traps. The hiqh quality seismic data have provided subsurface indications of potential CO2 geosequestration sites and geothermal energy sources.
For the next 3 years of the initiative funding, several seismic surveys and stratigraphic core hole drilling are being planned to validate the initial findings and fast track and augment the pre-competitive geoscience data acquisition. A series of state-wide basin evaluation studies and geochemical and geophysical surveys will constrain the potential of sedimentary basins in NSW for geological carbon dioxide storage as well as improve the understanding of the petroleum and geothermal energy potential of NSW.
Collaborative projects have been initiated and with the federal agencies Geoscience Australia and CSIRO, supporting the government's onshore energy security program for the entire country, particularly for NSW.