New figures show 44 percent in mineral exploration expenditure in Northern Territory

The CEO of the NT Resources Council, Scott Perkins, says the Bureau of Statistics figures for 2007-2008 are amazing, but not sustainable into the future.

He says the increase equates to $132 million.

“Really what your saying with this sort of activity is that it’s now possible with the prices that we’ve seen, to start to create wealth for all Australians with sustainable mining activities.

“The transformation into mining is sometimes quite difficult and a very expensive exercise”.

The CEO says the high demand for commodities in China in one of the reasons for the increase in activity.

He says the exploration boom offers great prospects for the future.

“That money is spent directly exploring in remote areas.

“It provides wages, it provides money for fuel, higher of equipment, everything from helicopters to drill rigs.

“Really, what it represents is a huge leap in economic activity in remote areas so it’s pretty good news.”

© 2008 ABC