Incentivising production

• creating an attractive investment environment for mining in NSW
• removing barriers to help projects move from exploration to production 

Why a focus 

Advancing projects from exploration to production requires measures to minimise investment risk. 

This phase involves high upfront capital costs and market uncertainties, making it difficult for projects to secure financing, even after the resource is found. Investment attraction measures can reduce financial uncertainty and provide incentives for projects to advance to production. By offering attractive investment conditions the NSW Government can help the industry secure financing and boost the state’s worldwide reputation as a reliable and diverse supplier. 

In NSW, critical minerals and high-tech metals mining projects undergo a rigorous, whole-of-government assessment process to balance economic, environmental and social impacts. While comprehensive by design, pre- and post-approvals processes can be lengthy and sometimes challenging to navigate. Ensuring strong coordination between government agencies when dealing with project applications will introduce greater efficiency while maintaining the integrity of the NSW planning and regulatory systems. A more coordinated approach to development consents and post-approval processes will help streamline project development activities and unlock critical investment and production. 

What we heard 

Through our consultation, we heard that there are opportunities for the NSW Government to improve the investment landscape. This includes assisting projects in securing offtake agreements, accessing federal funding and providing greater certainty to minimise investment risk.

Stakeholder feedback also outlined challenges in navigating the environmental approvals framework, and the complexity of the regulatory framework, particularly during the post-approvals phase. Feedback further highlighted opportunities to support efficient approval processes to provide greater certainty for the development of new projects. 

What we will do

• Implement a deferred royalty scheme for new critical minerals projects from 1 July 2025 to support investment and incentivise projects to advance into production.
• Undertake a review of planning processes to ensure the strategy’s objectives are achieved.
• Support projects to access federal funding by facilitating access to debt finance and other funding opportunities offered by the Australian Government, including the $4 billion Critical Minerals Facility.
• Promote NSW critical minerals projects to overseas markets through investment promotion activities in collaboration with Investment NSW, Austrade and Geoscience Australia.
• Assist industry to navigate NSW approval pathways and regulatory compliance.
• Continue to implement a Rapid Assessment Framework for critical minerals projects.
• Develop a ‘guidebook’ for mining development in NSW to facilitate navigation of approval pathways and compliance with regulatory requirements.