The recovery of British Columbia’s mining sector, which languished for a decade in the deep freeze, was demonstrated Tuesday with the release of numbers that show exploration spending last year soared to an all-time high.

The $416-million tally, released by Minister of State for Mining Kevin Krueger, comes on the heels of a record $1-billion haul from the sale of oil and gas rights in the province for 2007.

It’s the latest in a string of increases in mineral exploration spending over the past five years, marking a reversal of a trend that saw spending in the sector dwindle to record lows in the 1990s.

Spending jumped 57 per cent from 2006 and budgets for exploration projects grew, with more than 100 projects having a budget of more than $1-million.

B.C.’s estimate of mineral production for 2007 is $5.9-billion, up 5 per cent from 2006. The province had 10 coal and 11 metal mines operating last year; there are currently proposals for 23 new mines on the books.

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