Western Australia forfeits five mining tenements over unpaid annual rent

The Department of Mines, Petroleum and Exploration has declared five mining tenements forfeited for failure to pay annual rent, in four notices published in the Western Australian Government Gazette No. 123 of 29 September 2026. The declarations are made under sections 96A and 97 of the Mining Act 1978 and signed by Tyler Sujdovic, A/Deputy Director General, Resource and Environmental Compliance Division. Among the tenements are exploration licences E28/2704 and E28/2705 in the Kanowna mineral field, held jointly by Classic Minerals Limited and IGO Newsearch Pty Ltd.

The notices sit in the Minerals and Petroleum section of the gazette, the State’s official record of government and statutory notices, published by the Government Printer on Tuesdays and Fridays. Sections 96A and 97 of the Mining Act 1978 allow the Minister for Mines and Petroleum, acting through the Director General and delegated compliance officers, to forfeit a tenement where the holder breaches a covenant — in these cases, the obligation to pay annual rent.

The 29 September round follows a similar batch a week earlier: in Gazette No. 120 of 22 September 2026, the same two Kanowna licences, E28/2704 and E28/2705, were listed among tenements forfeited for non-payment of annual rent.

The tenements declared forfeited

• MP401: exploration licence E70/6559, held by AEMCO Pty Ltd, South West mineral field.
• MP402: exploration licences E28/2704 and E28/2705, held by Classic Minerals Limited AND IGO Newsearch Pty Ltd, Kanowna mineral field.
• MP403: mining lease M45/84, held by Hinds, Colin Wayne, Marble Bar mineral field.
• MP404: exploration licence E77/2666, held by Finis, Paul, Yilgarn mineral field.

Immediate effect

The notices covering mining lease M45/84 and exploration licence E77/2666 state that they come into operation at 12:00 midday on the day of publication, 29 September 2026. All four notices are signed by Tyler Sujdovic as A/Deputy Director General, Resource and Environmental Compliance Division, and issued from the department’s East Perth office.

Further forfeiture action in the pipeline

The same edition carries separate warnings covering more than 30 further tenements:

• MP405: intention to forfeit mining leases M 80/599 and M 80/600, held by Kimberley Metals Group Pty Ltd, unless outstanding royalty is paid by Monday, 5 October 2026.
• MP406: intention to forfeit 13 mining leases across the Ashburton, Mt Margaret, Pilbara, West Pilbara, Phillips River and Yilgarn mineral fields unless outstanding royalty is paid by Tuesday, 6 October 2026.
• MP407: application for an order for forfeiture of tenements including E 04/2426 (India Bore Diamond Holdings Pty Ltd) and E 69/3594 (Kalium Lakes Potash Pty Ltd) unless rent is paid by 21 October 2026.
• MP408: application for an order for forfeiture of tenements including E 04/2678 (India Bore Diamond Holdings Pty Ltd) and M 69/146 (Kalium Lakes Potash Pty Ltd) unless rent is paid by 29 September 2026 at 16:30.

For tenement holders, forfeiture ends tenure and removes the ground from the register, leaving it open to re-application by other explorers. The concentration of rent and royalty enforcement in a single edition — five forfeitures plus more than 30 tenements under notice — shows the Resource and Environmental Compliance Division is clearing arrears systematically rather than case by case.

Source: Western Australian Government Gazette, No. 123, 29 September 2026, Section I (Minerals and Petroleum), p. 2089-2090 (official reference: MP401-MP404).