Mineral sand deposits contain a concentrated amount of economically important minerals known as ‘heavy minerals,’ these heavy minerals contain high concentrations of the critical minerals titanium and zirconium with associated rare-earth elements (REE). The Wimmera region hosts three of the world’s six largest heavy mineral sand projects.
Critical Mineral Road Map
Victoria’s critical mineral resources include globally significant quantities of titanium, zirconium, and associated rare-earth elements in mineral sand deposits in the northwest of the state.
To support the emerging industry and to build community confidence in its development, the Victorian Government has launched its first Critical Minerals Roadmap.
Mining Regulation
Mining is primarily regulated through the Mineral Resources (Sustainable Development) Act (MRSDA) and the has a three-step process.
- Exploration Licence – preliminary investigation.
- Retention Licence –detailed investigation, development, and feasibility.
- Mining Licence – development start and operation.1
Resources Victoria play a key role in regulating the resources industry, attracting investment, and managing access to the earth resources.
https://resources.vic.gov.au/community-and-land-use
Approval Processes
Mining is also subject to a range of other planning and environmental legislation including the Planning and Environment Act 1987, Environmental Effects Act 1987, Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 and other state and federal legislation.
The Environment Effects Statement is Victoria’s highest environmental assessment process for uses with potential for significant impact and many mining and renewable projects are required to be assessed under this legislation.
An EES provides advice to the Minister and a framework for decision making by various authorities and gives relevant licensing authorities the information they need to determine whether approvals should be granted and what conditions should apply.
It also the main avenue for the community, council, and government authorities to have their say on social, economic, and environmental impact of a project through submission to an independent panel.
The Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (EPBC Act) is a federal government environmental law. It provides a legal framework to protect and manage nationally significant plants, animals, habitats, and places. This requires any significant environmental impacts to be referred to federal government for assessment and approval by the considered by the Minster of the Environment. Any decisions are typically informed by the EES assessment and technical reports.
The development of a mine and approval process take a many years’ involving exploration, environmental assessment, planning, landholder agreements, mining licence, etc and can be a very complex process.
More information is available on the Resources Victoria website: Landholder information - Resources Victoria
Projects
Avonbank Mineral Sands
The proposed Avonbank Mineral Sands Project is located approximately 8 kilometres north-east of Horsham. WIM Resource Pty Ltd (WIM) was granted a retention licence (RL2014) for the site in September 2014 and is proposing the development of up to 3,426 hectares over a 38-year period for a mineral sands mining and processing operation.
An Environmental Effects Statement (EES) was completed in December 2024. The EES described the proposed Avonbank Mineral Sands Project, assessed its potential environmental impacts, and identified measures to minimise these impacts.
The full EES, including detailed technical reports, is available on the WIM Resource website.
Following public exhibition of this EES, public hearings and a report from the independent Avonbank Mineral Sands Inquiry and Advisory Committee, the Minister for Planning announced that the EES had received a favourable assessment in December 2024.
In March 2025, Resources Victoria accepted WIM’s mining licence application (MIN008642).
The statutory feedback period closed on 9 April 2025, with over 830 submissions received. Resources Victoria is now undertaking a thorough assessment of WIM’s application.
In September 2025, Resources Victoria requested further information from WIM Resources to support their mining licence application. The response is due November 10th, 2025.
Wimmera Project – Illuka
Iluka Resources Limited proposes to develop the Wimmera Mineral Sands project which has an approximate area of 2,600 hectares and is located approximately 35 kilometres south-west of Horsham.
The WIM100 deposit contains approximately 200 million tonnes (Mt) of heavy mineral sands ore which is proposed to be extracted and refined onsite to produce zircon, titanium oxide, and rare earth products.
Iluka Resources is currently preparing the EES, including a range of social, economic, and environmental studies and regular community engagement sessions to inform the community. The preparation of the EES is expected to be completed and submitted to the Minister in 2026.
https://www.planning.vic.gov.au/environmental-assessments/browse-projects/wimmera-mineral-sands
Exploration and Retention Licences
Exploration forms an important part of the mining process and Exploration License are issued across the state for resources such as gold, copper, and mineral sands.
An exploration licence gives the licence holder exclusive rights to explore for specific minerals within the specified licence area.
A retention licence is applied where a mineral resource is identified but the resource is not yet commercially viable to mine but may become so in the future. The holder of a retention licence is entitled to retain the rights to a mineral resource in the land covered by the licence.
More than 5,000 licences have been granted under the mineral’s legislative regime and approximately 40 percent of the state is covered by exploration licences. However, only a small percentage of these ever result in mining activity due to the economic viability and environmental constraints.
In addition to Wimmera Project and Avonbank the municipality has a number of retention licences that are actively being investigated for earth resources.
Wim 150
Australian Zircon NL/ Murray Zircon Pl proposes to develop the 12,850-hectare WIM150 mineral sands deposit in the Wimmera region of western Victoria, approximately 20 kilometres southeast of Horsham and just north of the Grampians National Park.
The project proposed in 2011 and the EES is currently on hold.
https://www.planning.vic.gov.au/environmental-assessments/browse-projects/wim150-mineral-sands
Bungalally
The Bungalally Project is a mineral sands project proposed by WIM Resources. The Project is located approximately 10 km south of Horsham, in Victoria.
WIM has completed a drilling programs and detailed mineralogical studies, but no development has been proposed at this time.
https://wimresource.com.au/project/bungalally/