“It’s booming up there.”
That’s how property fund manager Warren Ebert describes Darwin. He ought to know, too. His company, Sentinel Property Group, has more than $600 million invested in the city.
The amount is so large that Ebert is now on the Northern Territory’s ‘Most Powerful’ List.
His enthusiasm for Northern Australia has also seen him dubbed the ‘King in the North’.
Ebert says that both employment and population growth are strong, and a recent survey said NT residents are the happiest in Australia.
Part of his thesis for the Northern Territory is that it’s becoming a magnet for investment, especially from the natural resource industry.
Ebert says this “real wealth” will continue to be generated in the NT, Western Australia, and Queensland for decades to come, while Sydney and Melbourne mostly just “clip the ticket”.
For example, the NT just approved development of its 10th operating mine, with gold production due in 2028 at the Mount Bundy Gold Mine.
There are plenty more coming up. There are 16 developing mining projects with a potential capital expenditure of $6.2 billion.
There may be no more infamous mine development in Australia than Arafura Rare Earths’ (ASX:ARU) Nolans Project. It’s 135km north of Alice Springs.
Mining magnate Gina Rinehart is a major shareholder, with her firm Hancock Prospecting owning 17.5% of the $1.2 billion company.
In May the company announced its final investment decision (FID), and hopes to be in construction by September.
This is considered an important project to diversify the rare earth supply chain away from China.
The 38-year mine life could contribute $25 billion to the Territory’s economy and generate 600 jobs in the construction phase.
Beetaloo gas could fuel a massive boom too
The Northern Territory Government is pushing hard for the Federal Labor Government to help it use its massive Beetaloo Sub-Basin to supply gas to both mining projects in the NT and via pipeline to the East Coast.
There’s no doubt the gas is there. It’s getting it to the East Coast markets that’s the problem. The infrastructure to extract and transit it isn’t there yet.
The Beetaloo resource is 430 trillion cubic feet of gas, a figure comparable to the Marcellus Shale region in the US.
In theory, production could be as high as 6,000-plus terajoules per day. But the region needs further infrastructure investment to make that happen.
By the end of 2026, smaller amounts will be heading 500km north to Darwin as gas begins to flow to the city for power generation.
This is happening as states in the south like Victoria fret about running short of gas.
An ASX-listed company called Tamboran Resources (ASX:TBN) will be the first company sending it there. Tamboran calls itself the Beetaloo’s “most advanced and active operator”.
The company sees potential to supply the international LNG market too, especially in the wake of the Middle East disruption this year.
The company has the following graphic to show how being in the Northern Territory shortens the travel time to China.
This opportunity comes as global energy markets continue to grapple with disruption from the Iran conflict and Ukraine’s attacks on Russia.
In July, there was also an announcement from ASX-listed firm Beetaloo Energy Australia (ASX:BTL), another company active in the region.
BTL has created a subsidiary called Beetaloo Digital and wants to create a data centre complex that can use Beetaloo gas to power it.
The Northern Territory Government has granted the company exclusivity for 12 months over 185 hectares of land at Weddell, south of Darwin, to help realise it.
It’s a proposal that would require significant investment and partnerships to become a reality.
Beetaloo Energy’s management says the proposal is subject to completing concept studies, securing consortium partners, and government and regulatory approvals.
Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro said in the same release to the market:
“Data centre proponents are keen to talk to us because of the promise of reliable and affordable Beetaloo gas-to-power supported by renewables and because of how close and connected we are to major Asian markets and digital superpowers.”
Data centres require large amounts of land, power, and water, all of which the NT can supply if it can capture the investment.
High gold prices may drive mine developments
ABC reporter James Elton wrote in June:
“The soaring price of gold, on a bull run since 2020, has led to gold mines reopening and expanding across the NT — including in the Tanami, and near Tennant Creek.”
One gold mine, dormant for nearly three decades, is now close to restarting because the rising gold price makes it economic again.
The Mt Todd mine, located close to Katherine, is close to a FID within 12 months. The Canadian owner, Vista Gold (TSX:VGZ), wants to bring it into production by 2030.
It wouldn’t be alone. Gold production in the Territory reached a record value of $1.7 billion in 2024–25.
Furthermore, Rob Murdoch of resource information service Austex says that strong commodity prices are allowing mining companies to raise capital on the ASX.
Precious metal firms raised the most in the first quarter of 2026:
Much of this capital is flowing into WA, Queensland, and the NT.
There is strong support from the local government for this to happen too.
In February 2026 Gerard Maley, the Deputy Chief Minister for Mining and Energy in the Northern Territory, said in a release:
“Exploration remains fundamental to sustaining a strong pipeline of future mining projects — and if you want a strong economy, you need a strong pipeline.”
The high-flying gold price is driving new opportunities too.
Last year a firm called PC Gold (ASX:PC2) listed on the ASX in October.
It’s exploring its Spring Hill Gold Project in the Pine Creek region of the NT. Gold mining at Spring Hill goes as far back as the 1800s.
It’s no exaggeration to say that this area is responsible for the development of Darwin and the broader Northern Territory.
Historian Henry Reynolds says in his recent book, Looking from the North, that Darwin began in 1869. Gold was discovered at Pine Creek, a little more than 200km south of Darwin, in 1872. The following year, Reynolds writes, “the rush was on”. Prospectors flooded in.
By 1888, just the Chinese community in Darwin had “39 stores and greengrocers, three carpenters’ shops, two shoemaker shops, three laundries, five tailoring establishments, 32 fruit and vegetable gardens, six gaming establishments, and seven brothels”.
A map of the region shows the rich and numerous gold workings that dot the landscape:
There’s no doubt that this is gold country.
Move over Warren Ebert, there’s a new king in town
Ten years ago, PC Gold CEO Ash Pattison acquired the Spring Hill Project as part of a private company for a cost of $3.5 million. That’s a bargain for coveted territory in a world-class gold province.
His leadership is already demonstrating huge wealth creation. PC Gold IPO’d onto the ASX back in October last year at $0.25 per share and a $68.5 million market cap.
By May, the stock was up 500% from its original listing price. That’s no small feat considering the gold price had its worst quarter (between April and May) for 13 years.
The results speak for themselves.
In November 2024 PC2 hit its most compelling drill hole up until that point in time with abundant physical gold in the core.
In fact, the initial drilling after coming onto the market was so compelling that PC2 raised money again only three months after its IPO to fund more exploration than originally planned for 2026.
In February PC2 raised $24 million — nearly double the IPO figure. It’s heavily backed by institutional investors and management.
Pattison said at the time:
“The strong cornerstone support from domestic and offshore institutional investors, together with our existing large institutional and high-net-worth shareholders, is a clear endorsement of our recent results and the exploration potential that remains across our 31km² Mining Licence. Spring Hill is rapidly shaping up as one of the most exciting gold stories in the Northern Territory and on the ASX.”
The company’s mineral resource estimate (MRE) has now grown by 84% to 1.5 million ounces. One million of these ounces is in the indicated category, giving higher confidence and the upcoming Prefeasibility Study a strong outlook.
The resource estimate does not yet include all recent drilling, with a further 40km of drilling planned for 2026. Three diamond rigs are operating right now, ensuring plenty of future news flow.
The resource at Spring Hill is still open along strike and at depth. A further update to the MRE is due before Christmas. Pattison says the recent capital raising means there’s no shortage of cash to make it all happen.
PC Gold is a clear example of the huge upside that exists for compelling gold projects.
There’s a known 20 million gold ounces in the wider Pine Creek region.
And who knows? Gold prices could even go higher than they are now.
It’s an exciting time as the resource industry invests and explores the Northern Territory and all the wealth it has to offer.
Write to Callum Newman at Mining.com.au
Images: PC Gold, DevEx Resources, Tamboran Resources, Austex
