November – December 2023 Updates
Promotions
Hetherington was proud to announce the following promotions as of 1 November 2023.
Ngaire Koch was being promoted to our Executive Team as Managing Consultant.
Sarah Fox, Julia Catalano and Hyungbin (Yung) Ju have been promoted to Assistant Managers.
Anna Fraser and Arley Toyne are promoted to Senior Consultants.
Congratulations to all on this well-deserved achievement! Hetherington is grateful for your efforts and dedication to providing exceptional results for our clients. We look forward to your prosperous futures at Hetherington!
Regulatory Updates – DEMIRS
On 3 November 2023, the WA Government announced the Department of Energy, Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety (“DMIRS”) will be renamed to the Department of Energy, Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety (“DEMIRS”) as of 1 December 2023. This new identity reflects the importance of Western Australia’s energy sector and the critical role it will play in the WA Government’s decarbonisation ambitions.
This renaming will not affect DEMIRS’ other regulatory functions, and it will continue to support a safe, fair and responsible community, industry, energy and resources sector.
For more information, you can visit https://lnkd.in/gqNsrxc5, or reach out to the Hetherington team.
Industry Events – AMEC Land Access Forum
On Friday 10th November, Hetherington’s Managing Consultant Ngaire Koch was proud to be included on the panel at the AMEC (Association of Mining and Exploration Companies) Land Access Forum and was able to participate in the discussion about how successful land access in Western Australia underpins the entire mining and exploration industry in the state. We were very pleased to be invited by AMEC and have Ngaire attend on behalf of Hetherington.
As part of this Forum, Department of Energy, Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety (DMIRS) also launched the Heritage Assistance Program (HAP), which will provide support to the mining industry and help offset the reported increasing costs of conducting Aboriginal Heritage Surveys (AHS) throughout Western Australia. The program will run for a period of five years (2023–2024 to 2027–2028) and is targeted at those individuals and companies who are actively undertaking works and incurring AHS costs.
Prospecting Licences can claim up to 100% of the rent paid for the reporting year, during which the Survey was completed, for the whole duration of the HAP 2023-2028. Exploration Licences can claim up to 50% of the rent paid during 2023-2026, reducing to 25% of the rent for years 2026-2028.
Holders of Prospecting Licences or Exploration Licences can claim a rebate on their AHS costs by lodging a form under the HAP at the time of Form 5 Operations Report submission. Evidence of the Survey costs incurred, and map of the Survey area will be required to support claims under the HAP. Those producers with an annual gross production value of greater than $600 million, are ineligible for the assistance.
Hetherington is happy to assist our clients to claim HAP rebates, so please reach out to us if you have any questions.
#amec #landaccess #mining #exploration
Industry events – AMEC 2023 Awards Dinner
Hetherington was proud to be one of this year’s sponsors at the 2023 AMEC (Association of Mining and Exploration Companies) Awards Dinner held Thursday the 30th of November at the Optus Stadium in Perth.
Hetherington’s David Salim presenting the Environment Award, and Ngaire Koch, Julia Catalano, Anna Fraser and Madelaine Cannell-Lunn were in attendance showing their support.
Best of luck to Fortescue, Sandfire, IGO Ltd and Hamelin Gold on being nominated for this award!
#AMEC #mining #exploration #environmentaward
Industry events – Sponsorship of the Environment Award at the 2023 AMEC Awards Dinner
Hetherington’s Group CEO and Principal Solicitor, David Salim, was pleased to present the Environment Award on behalf of Hetherington at the AMEC (Association of Mining and Exploration Companies) 2023 Awards. Well done to IGO Ltd, Tianqi Lithium Energy Australia, Bryan Williams, and Amin Safari.
It was a great event, and good to catch up with colleagues new and old.
Hetherington Post – December edition
In our December edition of the Hetherington Post, we explore recent regulatory updates such as:
· The Aboriginal Heritage and Legislation Amendment and Repeal Bill 2023;
· The Amendment to Victoria’s Minerals and Quarrying Legislation;
· Provide tips on the sign-off and cancellation process for activity approvals in New South Wales;
· Discuss the renaming of the Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety in Western Australia; and
· Discuss the decision from the Supreme Court on the Blue Ribbon Mines Pty Ltd v Roy Hill Infrastructure Case.
To find out more, make sure to read this edition of the Hetherington Post!
https://hetherington.net.au/december-2023/
#exploration #mining #mineralexploration #tenementmanagement #hetheringtonpost
