Acting Natural Resources and Mines Minister Mark Furner said a 17-month exercise to standardise seismic data had put gold-standard, ready-to-use data at companies’ fingertips.

“Complete data is as close as you can get to geological equivalent of an X marking the spot,” Mr Furner said.

“This is a data goldmine for resource companies searching for new gas deposits and rare minerals and an unrivalled head start and serious incentive to do business in Queensland.”

Mr Furner said this has given exploration companies another reason to invest in Queensland.

“Providing this data to exploration companies will give companies a head start of months or even years,” he said.

Seismic data creates a geological picture of the gas and rocks beneath the Earth’s surface and is vital in helping to pin point where to drill.

When a company collects seismic data in Queensland they are required to supply their findings to the Geological Survey of Queensland (GSQ) as part of their petroleum licence.

Mr Furner said Queensland’s entire seismic data set had been standardised and packaged, giving companies access to 60 years of complete information that would cost $4 billion to reproduce.

“By compiling and packaging this data, we are empowering exploration companies from the day they start doing business in Queensland,” he said.

Mr Furner said standardising seismic data would cost a resource company around $13,000 per km, adding millions of dollars to a project’s costs.

GSQ maintains and collects this geoscience data and provides advice on Queensland’s mineral resources  through a range of geoscience projects and initiatives.

Seismic data files can be downloaded from the Queensland Government’s online tool QDEX.