Tivan Limited and the Kimberley Land Council Aboriginal Corporation (KLC) have signed a Heritage Protection Agreement (HPA) for the Speewah Project in Western Australia.
The HPA outlines Tivan’s proactive engagement with KLC and Traditional Owners to safeguard Heritage and Native Title Rights in the area, specifically concerning Speewah tenements E80/2863 and E80/3657.
The HPA has established formal protocols to expedite on-country activities at the Speewah Project, ensuring the preservation and respect of the significant heritage and rights of the Traditional Owners.
The HPA includes:
- Protocols for planning, approval, and monitoring of exploration activities and rehabilitation requirements to minimise the impact on Heritage and Native Title Rights.
- Protocols for ongoing dialogue between Tivan, KLC, and Traditional Owners, along with a mechanism for economic participation in project development, defined as a percentage of cost.
- The path for the parties to identify and execute a new agreement with Traditional Owners for the Project’s projected future transition into productive mining.
According to Tivan, its Board sees the agreement as a significant step forward for the Speewah Project, highlighting Tivan’s differentiated policies towards Traditional Owners, This is the first time the KLC has entered into a land agreement for the Speewah Project.
“On behalf of the Board, I extend sincere thanks to Kimberley Land Council for our extensive dialogue this year. We are delighted to have established a positive working relationship, based on trust and respect, and to be afforded the important opportunity to develop inclusive and participatory pathways with the Traditional Owners of Speewah in the years ahead,” Tivan Executive Chairman Grant Wilson said.
Since acquiring the Speewah Project in February 2023, Wilson has been actively collaborating with the KLC, including meetings with senior representatives in Broome, Western Australia, and with Traditional Owners in the East Kimberley region.
The Speewah Project’s development pathway was agreed upon in September, with the first expression being the HPA announced today.
The HPA includes recent modifications to Western Australia’s heritage protection laws, with the modified Aboriginal Heritage Act 1972 taking effect on 15 November 2023.
