DATE: Tuesday June 15 1995 - 5.30 pm
VENUE: 2nd Floor, Rugby Club, Crane Place, Sydney
SPEAKERS: Bob Besley
TOPIC: "Exploration for Opal Comes of Age"
All of the world's large high quality opal deposits are located in
Australia. Over 90% of the world's supply of opal for the past 100
years has been derived from within or adjacent to the Great Artesian Basin
of New South Wales, South Australia and Queensland. There is great
potential to significantly expand the industry (currently $500 million
per year in retail sales) through the discovery of new opal deposits.
The opal industry has been dominated by prospectors and small mining
syndicates whose inventiveness and intuitive abilities have been truly
remarkable, creating a very colourful industry. Redfire Resources NL
was formed in 1990 and represents the first listed company dedicated to
applying geological principles and exploration expertise to a
systematic search for new opal fields within Australia and is currently
conducting exploration programmes in NSW and Queensland. Discovery of
significant zones of opal mineralization have been made north of Bourke
in NSW and north of Lightning Ridge in Queensland.
Bob Besley is Managing Director of Redfire Resources NL. He has been
involved in the exploration, discovery and commercial development of a number
of mineral deposits, including uranium, phosphate, rare earths, chromite
and mineral sands. He has spent much of the past 5 years investigating
all aspects of the opal industry and conducting exploration and
evaluation programmes for opal.