SA budget throws steel a bone but leaves explorers with no strategy, no funding, and no reason to stick around

The 2025 South Australian State Budget has landed with all the fanfare of a damp squib for the state’s mineral exploration and mining sector. In a time when bold policy is needed to spur investment, unlock potential, and catalyse long-term economic growth, the resources industry has once again been relegated to the back seat.

This year’s Budget contains no meaningful funding to stimulate confidence in the sector—despite undeniable warning signs. According to the latest Australian Bureau of Statistics figures, total exploration spend in South Australia has plummeted from $79.5 million in the December 2023 quarter to just $51.7 million by March 2025. That’s a $28 million drop in only 18 months, at a time when global demand for critical minerals is surging.

While the $650 million lifeline extended to the Whyalla steelworks is a welcome and necessary step for South Australia’s industrial base, it does little to address a more fundamental challenge: we can’t process what we don’t discover. The real opportunity for South Australia lies beneath its feet—yet the government has failed to back the very sector capable of delivering the raw materials for our clean energy future.

Chief executive of the Association of Mining and Exploration Companies (AMEC), Warren Pearce, is right to question the government’s inertia. One of the starkest omissions is the absence of South Australia’s long-awaited Critical Minerals Strategy. Every other state and territory in the country has released one. SA stands alone, despite boasting world-class deposits in copper, rare earths, graphite, and other essential inputs to the global energy transition.

This lack of strategic direction not only sends the wrong signal to investors—it’s actively holding back projects and capital. Exploration companies are often the first to take on risk, and they need certainty to do so. The expiry of exploration licences after 18 years—with no option for extension—is one example of a legislative dead end that deters long-term commitment. AMEC’s call for an amendment to extend these licence terms is not a radical proposal. It’s a necessary fix to a system that currently penalises perseverance.

And it’s not just strategy or regulation that’s missing—it’s resources. The Department for Energy and Mining (DEM) remains underfunded and overstretched. Without additional investment, the department cannot process tenements swiftly or progress overdue reforms to the Mining Act. Time is money in exploration, and bureaucratic delays are costing South Australia dearly.

There are proven solutions at hand. Co-funded drilling programs—used effectively in other states—have stimulated new discoveries, supported local contractors, and opened up new mining districts. AMEC has made this recommendation clear. The government has not responded.

South Australia’s mineral wealth is not hypothetical. It’s real, it’s in demand, and it’s a cornerstone of the broader national objective to build sovereign capability in critical minerals. But unlocking this wealth requires more than rhetoric—it requires action. A clear strategy. A functioning approvals system. A funding model that reflects the sector’s contribution to jobs, royalties, and regional development.

The resources sector doesn’t ask for handouts. It asks for partnership. If the government continues to overlook its potential, the real cost won’t be measured in missed line items—it’ll be counted in missed opportunities, lost revenue, and projects that choose to invest elsewhere.

South Australia can lead the next chapter of Australia’s resource-led growth. But not if its government keeps writing the mining industry out of the script.