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Crown Minerals Act 1991

Preliminary provisions - Minerals owned by the Crown

11: Minerals reserved to Crown

You could also call this:

"The government keeps ownership of minerals like coal and gold in land it sells or leases."

Illustration for Crown Minerals Act 1991

When the government sells or leases land, you need to know that the government still owns the minerals in that land. The government keeps ownership of minerals like coal, gold, and iron that are naturally in the land. This rule applies to all land sales or leases made after this law started.

If the land has pounamu, a type of stone, and section 3 of the Ngai Tahu (Pounamu Vesting) Act 1997 applies to it, then this rule does not apply to the pounamu. The government still owns other minerals in the land, even if the law that originally reserved them is no longer in effect. This means that the government's ownership of minerals is ongoing, even if the laws change.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM246311.

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Part 1Preliminary provisions
Minerals owned by the Crown

11Minerals reserved to Crown

  1. Every alienation of land from the Crown made on or after the commencement of this Act (whether by way of sale, lease, or otherwise) shall be deemed to be made subject to a reservation in favour of the Crown of every mineral existing in its natural condition in the land.

  2. Nothing in subsection (1) applies to pounamu to which section 3 of the Ngai Tahu (Pounamu Vesting) Act 1997 applies.

  3. For the avoidance of doubt, every mineral reserved in favour of the Crown by any enactment shall continue to be reserved in favour of the Crown, notwithstanding the repeal of that enactment.

Notes
  • Section 11(1A): inserted, on , by section 2 of the Crown Minerals Amendment Act 1997 (1997 No 82).