Bulletin – September 2012 Exploration and the Listed Resource Sector Abstract
A great deal has been written about the importance of the resource sector in Australia; however, most of this focuses on the few large companies that dominate the landscape. The numerous small companies in the sector are discussed less often. These small companies have become an important part of the exploration stage of the commodity production process, particularly in areas that have not previously yielded discoveries. Junior explorers tend to rely almost exclusively on listed equity to finance their operations and the boom in commodity prices over the past decade has meant that these companies have had little trouble raising equity. The resource boom has also resulted in a sharp rise in listings of new resource companies – to the point where nearly half of all listed companies on the ASX are now in the resource sector.