The Geophysics and Drilling Collaborations (GDC) program is a competitive grants program funded by the Northern Territory (NT) Government’s $9.5 million per annum Resourcing the Territory initiative and is administered by the Northern Territory Geological Survey (NTGS). The program will allocate up to $3 million to co-fund projects that address geoscientific knowledge gaps, advance exploration activity, and support the discovery and development of resources in the Territory.
Applications for round 15 are now closed.
Successful recipients will be announced by the end of May 2022.
Further details are available in the GDC round 15 guidelines PDF (3.2 MB) and under 'Guidelines and templates'.
Round 15 will allocate up to $3 million to share between selected greenfields and brownfields exploration programs. In comparison to previous rounds, the revised program has increased both the total pool of funding and the maximum funding available per project, and broadened the scope of exploration activities that are eligible for co-funding. A new ‘brownfields targeting’ project type has been added to encourage application of innovative techniques in generating targets for drilling near known deposits. This also includes the opportunity of co-funding of analysis of mine waste for additional elements including critical minerals. For more details download and read the GDC round 15 guidelines PDF (3.2 MB).
The program provides co-funding up to 50% of direct claimable project costs inclusive of GST capped at specific co-funding amounts for specific projects.
In addition to the co-funding available above, the Territory Supplier Incentive (TSI) scheme is available for any project that engages NT enterprises for service or supply. The TSI provides up to 50% of direct claimable project costs inclusive of GST capped at $10,000.
Applicants must meet eligibility requirements to be considered for funding. Applicants must apply online through GrantsNT. Proposals are competitively assessed against specific assessment criteria by an assessment panel. Information gained from the successful projects will become open file and released to the public six months after the completion of fieldwork to encourage further exploration.
Information about essential eligibility, project specific eligibility, the funding sequence, application process and successful applicants are detailed in GDC round 15 guidelines PDF (3.2 MB). Project specific proposal templates are available under 'guidelines and templates'. Project specific assessment criteria are available in appendices 1 to 4 in the GDC round 15 guidelines.
Review round 14 co-funding recipients.
Review all successful projects in previous rounds.
*Identified Resource is defined as a JORC-compliant or equivalent mineral resource of Inferred status or higher, or a Contingent Resource as defined by Society of Petroleum Engineers.
Co-funding for greenfields exploration aims to increase density of geoscientific data to improve geological knowledge and de-risk underexplored areas of the NT.
Greenfields diamond drilling projects are eligible when:
Greenfields reverse-circulation (RC) drilling projects are eligible when:
Diamond drilling in existing mineral fields, known mineralisation or in areas previously tested, may be eligible under Brownfields diamond drilling co-funding.
Before applying online, read GDC round 15 guidelines including Appendix 1: Greenfields drilling assessment criteria PDF (3.2 MB) and greenfields drilling proposal template DOCX (169.1 KB).
Greenfields geophysics projects are eligible when:
Camp- or prospect-scale geophysics in greenfields areas may be eligible under Brownfields targeting co-funding.
Before applying online, read GDC round 15 guidelines including Appendix 2: Greenfields geophysics assessment criteria PDF (3.2 MB) and greenfields geophysics proposal template DOCX (135.5 KB).
Contact the Collaborations grant manager to discuss project eligibility criteria.
Co-funding for brownfields exploration aims to support resource development and exploration targeting in areas of known resources endowment.
Brownfields diamond drilling projects are eligible for co-funding when:
Brownfields drilling projects will be not eligible when:
Before applying online, read GDC round 15 guidelines including Appendix 3: Brownfields diamond drilling assessment criteria PDF (3.2 MB)and brownfields diamond drilling proposal template DOCX (163.7 KB).
*Identified Resource is defined as a JORC-compliant or equivalent mineral resource of Inferred status or higher (comparable to definition from Australia’s National Classification System for Identified Mineral Resources or a Contingent Resource as defined by Society of Petroleum Engineers).
Brownfields targeting projects are eligible for co-funding when acquiring:
Before applying online, read GDC round 15 guidelines including Appendix 4: Brownfields targeting assessment criteria PDF (3.2 MB) and brownfields targeting proposal template DOCX (160.9 KB).
Contact the Collaborations grant manager to discuss project eligibility criteria.
The Territory Supplier Incentive (TSI) offers up to $10,000 inclusive of GST per project of additional funding to engage NT enterprises, which must be spent on local service and supply directly supporting the co-funded program.
This can include up to 50% of the cost of:
For the purpose of the TSI, an NT enterprise is a business that is registered with the Industry Capability Network Northern Territory; and operates in the NT; and has a significant permanent physical presence in the NT; and predominantly employs NT residents.
In the case of an individual who cannot register with the ICNNT, the onus is on the applicant to provide sufficient evidence that the individual meets the above criteria.
Date | Action |
---|---|
Monday 21 February 2022 | Applications open for round 15 through GrantsNT |
Friday 29 April 2022 | Applications for round 15 close through GrantsNT |
May 2022 | Assessment panel meet and applicants notified of funding outcome |
June 2022 | Funding agreements negotiated and signed with successful applicants |
1 December 2022 | Fieldwork to be complete |
30 June 2023 | Funding agreement ends |
GDC round 15 guidelines PDF (3.2 MB)
Project Proposal template - greenfields drilling DOCX (169.1 KB)
Project proposal template - greenfields geophysics DOCX (135.5 KB)
Project proposal template - brownfields diamond drilling DOCX (163.7 KB)
Project proposal template - brownfields targeting DOCX (160.9 KB)
Advice for successful applicants PDF (777.3 KB)
Final report template DOCX (54.6 KB)
Project deliverables PDF (905.9 KB)
Vendor creation form PDF (30.7 KB)
Geological sample submission form
Geological sample submission procedure
Guideline 7 - Reporting on Mineral Titles
Guidelines for NT onshore petroleum reporting and data submission
From 25 December 2021, vaccination requirements will apply to all:
To find out more, read the conditions of contract for COVID-19 mandatory requirements.
For all Department of Industry, Tourism and Trade grants, an extra declaration will be added to the terms and conditions.
Applicants must confirm they are meeting the directions of the policy. The department may ask for proof to check compliance.