- Hon Shane Jones
New figures on mining activity across New Zealand show the Crown collected nearly a quarter of a billion dollars in revenue in the 2023/24 financial year, bolstered by royalties collected from petroleum and gold, Resources Minister Shane Jones says.
The statistics, released this morning by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, provide a nationwide picture of minerals production, revenue from royalties ($242 million), and industry expenditure on prospecting and exploration in the 2023/24 year.
"While these numbers won't yet reflect the work the Coalition Government is doing to unleash the economic potential of our abundant minerals endowment, it demonstrates a sector that continues to deliver for New Zealanders by driving regional economic activity and contributing royalties that ultimately help fund necessities such as transport, education and healthcare," Mr Jones says.
"This data also gives us visibility of investment trends over time, and I am particularly heartened to see the growth in spend over the last decade in the prospecting, exploration, and development of our natural resources. In 2023, this spend was $91.3m and will largely reflect investment that directly benefits regional communities through jobs and local contracts.
"In 2023, we also saw an increase in operators reporting aggregate and industrial minerals production. We rely on the quarrying sector to self-report this data where the material being mined isn't owned by the Crown. The sector reported a 17.9 percent increase in aggregate production on 2022, with the biggest increases in rock, sand and gravel mined for roading. Understanding the quarrying activity taking place around the country is particularly important as we work to address our infrastructure shortfall - there is no construction without access to quarried materials."
Over the last year, the Coalition Government has moved quickly to lay the foundations for an enduring, strategic approach to scaling up mineral development in New Zealand. This includes introducing legislation to reverse the ban on petroleum exploration, developing a draft Minerals Strategy and Critical Minerals List, and commissioning the GNS Minerals Potential of New Zealand report as a tool to attract investment.
"We are committed to utilising our minerals to boost regional opportunities and jobs, increase our self-sufficiency, improve energy security and resilience, and drive our export-led focus for economic recovery," Mr Jones says.
"The new statistics demonstrate a sector that continues to deliver for New Zealanders and, with the initiatives this Government is putting in place to drive further exploration and mining activity, I look forward to watching these numbers continue to grow in coming years."
Find more at Annual minerals industry statistics and survey - New Zealand Petroleum and Minerals (nzpam.govt.nz)
