The Newman government says miners who want to exploit Queensland's uranium reserves should start knocking on the door.
The government says it's ready to accept applications for uranium mining after it ended a long-standing ban imposed in the 1980s.
It's estimated the state's reserves are worth about $10 billion, including $8 billion in Queensland's northwest.
Uranium mining was banned in Queensland in 1989 but it hasn't been mined since 1982, when the Mary Kathleen mine near Mount Isa ceased production.
Mines Minister Andrew Cripps says uranium mining will be subject to a robust framework to ensure future mines meet the world's best environmental protection and safety standards.
He said the ban, imposed by Labor in the 1980s, was "purely ideological" and it was time for the state to reap the benefits of its reserves.
Under the framework, applications for uranium mining will be assessed by the Queensland coordinator-general, with environmental assessments and approvals to be jointly completed by the Queensland and federal governments.
Uranium will be exported through existing licensed ports in Darwin and South Australia. There are no ports in Queensland licensed for the export of uranium.
Mr Cripps said uranium would only be exported to countries that have a bilateral agreement with Australia and only for peaceful purposes and nuclear energy production or waste disposal plants won't be permitted.
"We want the community to know our framework includes strict environmental, health and safety standards to ensure safe handling and transportation," Mr Cripps said.
"It is now up to industry to decide when to lodge applications for uranium mining and those decisions will be influenced by a number of factors including global commodity prices, market supply and demand and mining costs."
Also on Friday, the government said it was inviting tenders to reopen the Mary Kathleen mine, but not for uranium.
It said the site was still rich in other so-called rare earth elements such as Lanthanum and Cerium and expressions of interest were being sought from companies that wanted to extract it.
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