AUSTRALIAN COURT SCRAPS ABORIGINAL HERITAGE ORDER HALTING BILLION-DOLLAR GOLD MINE

Fri 16 October 2026:

An Australian court has overturned a government order protecting an Aboriginal heritage site that halted a billion-dollar gold mine project in New South Wales, ruling that the decision was legally invalid.

The Federal Court ruled in favor of mining company Regis Resources, which challenged a 2024 protection order covering 400 hectares of its McPhillamys Gold Project near Blayney, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) reported Wednesday.

The order, issued by then-Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek, prevented construction of a tailings dam intended to store mining waste, rendering the project financially unviable, according to the company.

Justice James Stellios ruled that procedural requirements had not been followed when considering an Aboriginal heritage protection application involving a culturally significant area associated with the Wiradyuri people.

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The original application, lodged in 2020 by Wiradyuri elder Aunty Nyree Reynolds, sought protection for an area linked to the Blue Banded Bee Dreaming story.

Stellios stressed that the ruling concerned procedural errors rather than the merits of the Aboriginal heritage claims.

The matter will return to Environment Minister Murray Watt for reconsideration.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the government was examining the judgment, while Watt pledged continued engagement with Indigenous communities and industry.

Regis Resources welcomed the ruling, describing it as a significant step toward reviving one of Australia’s largest undeveloped gold projects.

-Source: AA

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