22/09/2026
There Is No Opal Left in Andamooka?
I’m always confused when people say there’s no opal left in Andamooka.
I think people may be confusing fewer miners with less opal. There aren’t as many people actively mining here anymore so naturally there’s less Andamooka opal entering the market.
Opal mining is expensive, unpredictable and physically demanding. The cost of diesel, machinery, repairs and running a claim continues to rise. You can move tonnes of dirt without finding anything worth selling so fewer people are prepared to take the risk.
That doesn’t mean the opal has disappeared.
Demand for genuine Andamooka opal is so strong. A lot of quality pieces are sold privately, kept by miners or purchased by regular customers before they ever reach a website or social media. Just because you don’t see much advertised publicly doesn’t mean it isn’t being found.
Andamooka is a incredibly diverse opal field capable of producing everything from crystal and white opal to all types of matrix, painted lady specimens, honey and black opal. The ground hasn’t stopped producing we simply have fewer miners out there searching it.
Less mining means fewer discoveries. Fewer discoveries combined with higher demand means less Andamooka opal available publicly.
There’s still opal here. You just have to be willing to work incredibly hard to find it. ⛏️🌈
