A VALUABLE financial incentive for junior miners looking to discover the mines of the future was passed in the Senate on Monday, 19 March.
The Junior Minerals Exploration Incentive will provide $100 million over the next four years to allow greenfields exploration programs to distribute their tax losses as a credit to Australian resident shareholders.
The scheme is aimed at encouraging and supporting smaller exploration companies to undertake greenfields mining exploration.
Minister for Resources and Northern Australia Matt Canavan said the scheme would allow greenfields exploration programs to distribute their tax losses as a credit to Australian resident shareholders.
“The government recognises the critical role that smaller, or ‘junior’, mineral explorers play in maintaining a healthy and vibrant resources sector, and we are committed to supporting this sector,” he said.
“Greenfields mineral exploration underpins the Australian resource sector by finding new mineral deposits and ensuring a strong investment pipeline.”
Treasury Laws Amendment (Junior Minerals Exploration Incentive) Bill 2017 amended the tax law to replace the former Exploration Development Incentive with the Junior Minerals Exploration Incentive.
Minister for Finance Mathias Cormann said the incentive will encourage junior explorers to take risks and to have a go at discovering the next large-scale mineral deposit.
Minister Cormann said this new incentive entitled Australian resident investors in small minerals exploration companies to a refundable tax offset (or where the investor is a corporate tax entity, additional franking credits) if the company in which they have invested issued them an exploration credit.
“The ability of an exploration company to give up their tax losses to distribute credits to investors as a tax offset will make investing in a junior explorer much more attractive,” he said.
Minister Cormann said mineral exploration acted as a catalyst for new investment opportunities and job creation while supporting local businesses in regional communities across Australia.
The Bill was passed with Labor making amendments to require the Minister to publish an annual impact assessment of the Junior Minerals Exploration Incentive.
Labor’s amendments will also require the Commissioner of Taxation to publish details of who receives the exploration incentive credits and how much they receive.
The scheme replaces the Exploration Development Incentive.
修改评论