A $100 million tax incentive scheme to encourage resources exploration aims to arrest the decline in Western Australia's mining sector.
Legislation cleared the Senate on Monday with Labor supporting the new scheme.
The Junior Mineral Exploration Tax Credit aims to make it easier to raise money by allowing tax losses made by junior explorers to be distributed as a tax credit to shareholders.
The Greens attempted to have thermal coal exempted from the scheme, but failed after opposition from the major parties.
"The legislation already exempts petroleum, it should exempt thermal coal as well," Greens senator Andrew Bartlett told parliament.
"The time for coal in Australia is over and we need to be recognising that."
Government frontbencher Zed Seselja said the scheme would create a more stable program for investor confidence to help exploration companies find "tomorrow's mines".
Exploration has dropped almost 70 per cent in the past five years.
The bill will now return to the House of Representatives to approve government-supported Labor amendments looking to improve the scheme's transparency.
Share
