Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Angst at Oyu Tolgoi Undermines Recovering Mongolia: This Week 5 11 13 30
Angst at Oyu Tolgoi Undermines Recovering Mongolia: This Week 5 11 13 30
INSIGHT
INSIGHT
WEST END
NEWS
week Zazu peers? afraid of government
Greenland: and here to
5… 11… Golder 13… help 30…
Focus: East-
Central Europe
Better times to come for
the region’s miners
14…
mining-journal.com
Comment
This week
Peru’s minister of energy and The happy gang… Western Australia’s minister of mines and petroleum, Bill Marmion (right) celebrates
mines says the country is on with Atlas Iron Ltd’s managing director, Ken Brinsden (left) and chairman David Flanagan (centre) after
track to supplant China as the opening the Mt Webber iron-ore mine in the Pilbara of Western Australia. Production has started at
world’s second-largest copper 3Mt/y rate, before it ramps up to 6Mt/y following the commissioning of the second-phase expansion by
producer (Chile is the biggest), the end of the December quarter
according to Spanish-language
website OutletMinero. During a basic earnings for six months to Barrick expected production to Cape Lambert will have cash,
visit to Freeport-McMoRan June 2014 are expected to be start at Jabal Sayid in late 2015 receivables and listed securities
Copper & Gold Inc’s Cerro Verde between R6.26 billion with output of 100-130Mlb/y to the value of A$100 million
project, Eleodoro Mayorga Alba (US$578,000 million) and R6.90 copper in concentrate in the first (US$94 million), which includes
said the South American country billion, with headline earnings five full years of operation. The unrestricted cash of A$70
would produce 2.8Mt of copper per share (HEPS) and basic mine is expected to operate for million. The board will meet in
in 2016, double the amount it earnings per share (EPS) to be up to 15 years on the basis of the next two weeks to finalise a
produced in 2013. Peru’s largest between R19.50 and R21.50, it 1,400Mlbs of copper in proven dividend and/or return of capital
producers are: Cerro Verde, said. In the first half of 2013, and probable reserves, the to shareholders.
MMG Ltd’s Las Bambas, Hudbay headline and basic earnings company said.
0.12
Minerals Inc’s Constancia, and were R7.75 billion and R7,76
Chinalco’s Toromocho. R7.75 billion respectively, and Bullabulling Gold Ltd is
0.10
HEPS and EPS were R24.13 and expected to delist from AIM
Central Europe-focused New R24.16 respectively. following Norton Gold Fields A$
reached agreements with its West African gold producer 50% of the company. Norton Cape Lambert Resources Ltd share price (A$)
customers to sell coking coal at Endeavour Mining Corp’s said it had now reached a 0.06
June 17, 2014 July 16, 2014
an average €85/t (US$116/t) in first-half production results position of control of
the September quarter, a 1% surpassed expectations thanks Bullabulling with an interest of
increase on the realised price to strong output from its 50.95%, and an offer for Avebury Nickel Mines Ltd
from the second quarter. This Agbaou and Nzema mines in Bullabulling shares was (ANML), formerly QCG
average coking-coal price is Ivory Coast and Ghana, subsequently extended by 14 Resources, has made headway in
based on the expectation that respectively. The miner days to July 28. its proposed acquisition of MMG
coking-coal sales for the produced 228,429oz in the first Ltd’s dormant Avebury nickel
September quarter will be split six months of the year, putting it ASX-listed Cape Lambert mine in Tasmania. It has
approximately 45% hard coking on course to beat its annual Resources Ltd said it has appointed GMP Securities as
coal, 42% semi-soft coking coal guidance of 400,000oz- reached a settlement with lead manager for the financing
and 13% PCI coking coal, the 440,000oz. Metallurgical Corporation of programme to assess a range of
company said. NWR continues to China Ltd over the final A$82 equity and debt financing
target full-year coal production Finance million (US$77 million) payment options to fund both the
and sales of 9-9.5Mt, with from the sale of the Cape A$33.25 million (US$31.3
55-60% of coking coal in the Barrick Gold Corp and Saudi Lambert magnetite iron-ore million) needed to complete the
sales mix. Arabian Mining Company project. The company said both acquisition and future capital
(Ma’aden) have agreed to form a the arbitrator and escrow agent requirements. MMG placed
Kumba Iron Ore Ltd has warned joint venture to operate the have been advised to release Avebury on care and
profits will slide by as much as Jabal Sayid copper project. A$30 million to MCC and the maintenance in February 2009
19% in the first half of 2014, as it Ma’aden will acquire its 50% balance of approximately A$51.6 amid the global financial crisis
prepares to release results next interest in the project for cash million to Cape Lambert. and subsequent plunge in the
week. Headline earnings and consideration of US$210 million. Following receipt of the funds, nickel price.
This week
Northland Resources SA has 35.1m, 56.3% Zn over 18m and People & appointments
filed for corporate 56.6% Zn over 71m. The third
editorial@mining-journal.com
reorganisation with the Luleå hole intersected a copper-silver-
District Court in Sweden for a germanium rich zone grading
second time in two years as it 6.1% Cu, 44.5% Zn, 144g/t Ag Newcrest changes Centaurus exodus
struggles to deal with paying and 66.9g/t Ge over 31m from Newcrest Mining Ltd’s new Centaurus Metals Ltd has cut its
suppliers and shipping iron ore. 197m. managing director (MD) and chief executive and board roles in a
The owner of the Kaunisvaara executive (CEO) Sandeep Biswas cost-cutting move as it looks to
iron-ore mine in Sweden started Ormonde Mining plc has been decided to trim his executive attract finance for its Jambreiro
an “informal reorganisation” informed by the local leadership team as the company iron-ore project in Brazil.
process on June 30. As part of government it needs further focused on operating discipline Operations director Peter Freund
June’s savings strategy, the information before a mining and cash generation. Biswas has stepped down from an executive
company said it was temporarily concession for its Barruecopardo scrapped the chief operating role, but remains a non-executive
suspending payments to its tungsten project in Salamanca, officer role that he had been board member, while Richard
suppliers and creditors. This Spain can be issued. In April, performing for the past six Hill and Steven Zaninovich left
move was opposed by one Ormonde said a legal review months, and replaced executive the board as non-executive
supplier, prompting Northland needed to be completed for the general manager of people and directors. In addition, company
to apply to the court in Sweden historic mining concessions at communications Debra Stirling secretary Geoff James left
for a formal debt reorganisation the project prior to a new with Jane Thomas, formerly of Centaurus with chief financial
in an attempt to keep the concession being issued, which renewable energy company AGL officer John Westdorp assuming
company afloat. On Monday, it was expecting in late June- Ltd. Geoff Day, who was the additional role. Alexandro
the court approved the July. On Tuesday, Ormonde said executive general manager of Moura, general manager of
application for a restructure in the review had largely been sustainability and external affairs, Brazilian operations, was made
Northland Resources and its completed to its knowledge, but will leave Newcrest this quarter redundant.
subsidiaries. “a final formal request has been and become CEO of gold
made by the authorities to producer Kingsgate Consolidated Moves at Mawson
Vancouver-based Mercator obtain comment from the Ltd. His responsibilities will be Toronto-listed Mawson West Ltd
Minerals Ltd’s shares sunk as owners of the historic cancelled distributed among other has made chief operating officer
much as 31% this week after concessions in relation to the managers, Newcrest said. Greg Entwistle its new chief
revealing a proposed US$100 cancellation process, no Additionally Phil Stephenson will development officer (CDO), after
million takeover of the company response having been received join Newcrest on August 18 to Alistair Croll came in as his
was unlikely to go ahead. The in relation to its initial request.” take up the role of general replacement, effective July 28.
company said its suitor Intergeo Ormonde advised that a “short manager for health, safety, “Entwistle’s transition to CDO
MMC Ltd, controlled by Russia’s additional time” was required for environment and security. He ensures significant focus remains
Mikhail Prokhorov, did not this step. held the same position at on delivery from the company’s
expect to request or agree an Newmont Mining Corp. At high grade Kapulo and Dikulushi
extension to the completion Sirius Resources Ltd’s shares Kingsgate, Day replaces former [copper] projects in 2014, in
deadline beyond August 1. This jumped 15% to A$3.95/share MD and CEO Gavin Thomas, who addition to securing our future
came after the Russian Federal (US$3.7/share) on Wednesday passed away in June. Additionally, corporate objectives,” managing
Anti-Monopoly Services said on after releasing high nickel, Kingsgate’s chief financial officer director and chief executive,
July 2 that it was extending its copper, cobalt and PGM hits from Duane Woodbury left the Bruce McFadzean, said. Croll has
review of the deal by two the first reconnaissance drill hole company in early-July with Ross previously held senior roles at
months. If FAS has not at the Taipan prospect, part of its Coyle, Kingsgate’s general companies in Australia and South
completed its review by August Polar Bear deposit in Western manager of finance and Africa, including stints at St
1, the proposed transaction will Australia. Results were 4.10m at administration replacing him. Barbara Ltd, Consolidated
not go ahead unless the parties 3.8% Ni, 2.45% Cu, 0.08% Co, Minerals Ltd, Anglo American
otherwise agree, Mercator said 0.9g/t Pt and 1.6g/t Pd from Murphy gets technical Platinum Ltd and De Beers.
on Tuesday. 104.4m, including 2.15m at 5.84% Former Anglo American plc
Ni, 3.73% Cu, 0.12% Co, 1.1g/t Pt executive Barry Murphy has Klondex hires
Exploration and and 1.65g/t Pd from 106m. Sirius’ been named senior vice Toronto-listed Klondex Mines Ltd
development managing director, Mark Bennett, president of technical services at has added Mike Isaak, Henry
said: “To get a result like this with Yamana Gold Inc, effective Follman and Rosa Whisenand to
The first assays from the the first hole into a 10km-long September 3. In his new role, its team as it looks to grow its
underground diamond drilling target horizon has exceeded all Murphy will be responsible for gold and silver operations in
campaign at Ivanhoe Mines our expectations and bodes very all project development and Nevada, US. Isaak, formerly of
Ltd’s Kipushi copper-zinc- well for the nickel potential at construction, and help develop Barrick Gold Corp, was made
germanium-lead and precious Polar Bear.” Yamana’s strategy for mine manager of the Fire Creek
metals project in the Democratic optimisations, expansion and operation. Follman, previously at
4.0
Republic of the Congo have corporate development, Couer Mining Inc, was made Fire
confirmed high copper and zinc according to the Canadian gold Creek senior geologist and
3.5
grades. Three drill holes miner. He has over 25 years of Whisenand, also previously at
returned zinc grades of 40.9% A$
mining and mineral processing Barrick, was made financial
over 348.5m, 44.8% over 339.4m 3.0
experience in Africa and South manager, assuming
and 33.3% over 305.8m, along Sirius Resources share price (A$)
America and was most recently responsibilities for information
with internal zones in the first 2.5
June 11, 2014 July 16, 2014
vice president of projects for technology, purchasing,
two holes of 60.4% Zn over Anglo’s copper division. warehousing and accounting.
News: Americas
Betting on Zazu
half-owned by Teck Resources and port when Red Dog opened. and it’s not complicated in any
Richard Wachman Ltd, which operates the adjacent Teck now operates [the port] way.”
News editor under licence. Zazu’s share price, it must be
Red Dog project, could become
For more evidence that zinc is one of the world’s largest “Obviously [AIDEA] want to said, is still a long way from the
about to fly, look no further than producers of zinc concentrate. see a second user, because they C$1.75 (US$1.63 it floated at in
Toronto-listed Zazu Metals Corp, Ford said: “We are very will be able to extract 2007, trading at around C$0.53.
where Lukas Lundin, chairman leveraged to a rise in the zinc [additional] toll fees,” he said. Ford reckoned the market was
of the mining company that price. When you look forward, He said production would not undervaluing the shares. He said
bears his name, holds just under anything over US$1/lb to kick in until the latter part of this on the basis of financial
20%. US$1.10/lb and the project starts decade and indicated the yardsticks used in the PEA,
Interviewed by Mining Journal, to look fantastic (zinc is currently permitting process had a way to Zazu’s half share in Lik was
Zazu president Matt Ford let slip trading just shy of US1.05/lb, up go. worth more than double Zazu’s
the company was expecting to from US$0.83/lb a year ago). “Given the innate complexity, market capitalisation of C$25
gain clearance to trade its shares “As a rule of thumb for every four or so years is probably a million.
on the US over-the-counter 10c on the zinc price, we are good guess for permitting and He added the balance sheet
exchange, OTCQX, in about a looking at US$80 million on the construction of the mine,” he was strong with no debt and
month. NPV (net present value) and said. cash of about US$1 million,
That has come about after about 8% on the IRR (internal “I always remind people that although forecast capital
Ford received a barrage of rate of return) - US$1.50 and we in the general context of trying expenditure of US$352 million
enquiries from would-be US are away to the races.” to permit a mine, we’ve got it was hardly chicken feed.
investors, eager to gain That said, development was fabulous. Mining-friendly Zazu is not rushing to spend
exposure to the company and yet to get into full swing and jurisdiction rolling out the red money on a feasibility study, at
the strengthening zinc price as Ford was waiting for a report, carpet for miners, established least not yet, so what could be in
– around the world – old mines from the Alaska Industrial procedures, adjacent to an the offing if the zinc price
close and too few open to take Development Export Authority operating mine [Red Dog], all the continued to rise?
their place. (AIDEA), that should outline in data gathered and blessed. Given Zazu owns Lik with Teck
“We have been pursuing the next few months the extent Consequently we’re expecting a in a 50-50 venture, with an
a US listing because, don’t to which it is ready to shell out far less bumpy road than is option to acquire up to 80% if it
forget, although we are based on nearby port and road typically the case.” meets certain cap-ex targets,
in Vancouver, we are a US- infrastructure to underscore Lik’s When will drilling start? “We surely Ford might consider
based zinc property – we’re commercial viability. have done some preliminary selling to Teck if the opportunity
in Alaska.” Ford was optimistic. “The nice drilling and engineering work, arose?
Rattling off data from a thing here is that AIDEA is but unlikely to do more this year. “I can’t say anything on their
recently published preliminary specifically mandated to Actually, the deposit is so large behalf, but speaking personally,
economic assessment (PEA), undertake regional investment. that exploration drilling is of that would make perfect sense.”
Ford claimed Zazu’s Lik property, They funded and built the road limited value. We know it’s there Make of that what you will.
Base camp at Lik property, which Zazu claimed was undervalued by the market
News: Americas
News: EMEA
News: EMEA
Continues from page 7 This boost in new demand (TSX-V: NAR), prospecting for
stage and are expected to be for diamonds is forecast to economic deposits in Canada’s
approved by the year-end. The outpace new supply. Russia’s arctic, and Botswana Diamonds
project’s mine build cost is Grib mine, which began plc (LSE: BOD), exploring in
At the time of writing the author held a long position in Stornoway Diamond, North Arrow Minerals, Lucara Diamond Corp, and a short position in
Dominion Diamond Corp. This article originally appeared on PaulZimnisky.com. Paul Zimnisky has worked in the financial industry for over 10 years as an
arbitrage trader, equity analyst, and exchange-traded fund creator and developer. He closely follows the global financial markets, gold, diamonds, and the
US energy industry. He graduated from the University of Maryland’s Robert H Smith School of Business with a BS in Finance
T
he choice of peer companies for remu- carded in the past year because industrial
neration schemes should be as free from stocks were performing better had a median
subjective judgements as possible to share price fall in the June quarter of 17%,
mirror the choices confronting investors. compared to the headline index gain of 1.6%.
How to turn salaried employees into capi- The choice of only the most strongly per-
talists is not as straightforward as it might forming stocks to make up the index biases
seem at first blush. Having access to equity the outcome and undermines its suitability
alone does not do the job. as a peer indicator.
As long as equity is granted without any One reaction to the absence of an indepen-
capital contribution, undeserving executives dently compiled market measure with suffi-
get a free ride when external events drive On track… a peer group of supposedly cient credibility is the route followed by
share prices higher. Without any capital contri- equivalent companies against which to Apollo Minerals. It made up its own list of
bution there is no capital loss in the event of a measure share-price performance before any peers. Directors chose 10 iron-ore explorers
share price downturn. Some executives even rewards are conferred is meant to help mitigate and developers in a similar position to Apollo
get another bite at the cherry at a lower price. the potential for underserved outcomes and facing the same challenges and needing
Executives’ risks differ materially from those of to complete similar tasks.
shareholders who have committed capital. resources stocks making up nearly half the The narrower the base, the more subjec-
The concept of a peer group of supposedly companies listed on the ASX. tive the choice inevitably becomes and the
equivalent companies against which to The S&P/ASX 200 resources index corre- greater the chance of outliers influencing
measure share price performance before any sponds most closely to the key S&P/ASX 200 outcomes. The Apollo choice also implies
rewards are conferred is designed to help equity benchmark tracked by investors in the directors were rather selfishly looking at the
mitigate the potential for underserved out- Australian market. However, the index is benchmark choice from their own perspec-
comes. Apollo Minerals Ltd is one company dominated by BHP Billiton, which has a 40% tive rather than that of investors. Investors
going down this route. weighting. Combined with Rio Tinto and looking for the best returns irrespective of
Last November, Apollo shareholders Woodside Petroleum, the largest three commodity exposure could reasonably
approved an offer of three million ordinary account for 61%. expect executives to have a similarly broad
shares to the company’s executive chairman The vast bulk of Australia’s listed miners perspective when judging the suitability of
in the event that the Apollo share price beat would not see this group as peers in any investment outcomes.
those of its peers by at least 20%, as long as operational or strategic sense, although an As it happens, the Apollo example itself
the company also attracted a strategic invest- investor might see things differently. An illustrates why investors should not support
ment of more than A$2 million (US$1.9 mil- investor should be able to expect a better schemes with such narrowly defined peer
lion) and the chairman achieved the KPIs set return from an early stage mine developer groups. Since last year, Apollo has given up
by the board for the performance period. than from the market leaders to compensate on its iron-ore aspirations and wants to
Under the approved formula, rewards for risk. become a copper miner. This leaves the
could be higher with a better relative share There are times, however, when macro directors of the company with outcomes
price outcome. Five million shares would be forces unconnected with company activities partly tagged to an irrelevant group of stocks
available if the Apollo share price outper- will produce prolonged and large disparities and a shareholder approval based on an erro-
formed the selected peer stocks by more in returns between the market leaders and neous assumption about future activities.
than 60%, for example. the rest of the sector, reducing the usefulness The best solution for companies and for
At face value, the Apollo formula neatly of the largest stocks as a performance bench- investors is to look at the sector as a whole,
connects executive pay with the primary mark. without picking and choosing to suit director
sources of investor wealth, although not all The small-resources share price index is the or executive prejudices about how they
the features of the Apollo scheme are as com- most logical alternative candidate for a place should be judged.
mendable. Contrary to recommended gov- in the remuneration schemes of the bulk of Among the nearly 1,000 listed stocks mak-
ernance practices, non-executive Apollo companies needing a benchmark measure- ing up the Australian resources sector, the
directors are given access to the same ment. In many ways, the index is the most median return over the 12 months to June
scheme as company executives, potentially representative of the available measures of has been minus 14%. The upper quartile cuts
hobbling board independence. resource-sector performance in the Austral- in at plus 25%. The top decile hits at 99%.
In choosing peers for its scheme, Apollo ian market. Even this, however, comes with Executives beating these latter two objective
would have had to confront the choice faced some warts. benchmarks could be confident they were
by all ASX resources companies wanting to The construction methodology of the adding value for investors looking for the
define a peer group for inclusion in an execu- small-resources index allows for constituent best of what the sector had to offer. They
tive remuneration plan. There is no obvious stocks to be deleted from the index if their could justifiably get something extra in their
independent benchmark for the 1,000 or so performance falls short of non-resource, pay packets.
John Robertson is a director of EIM Capital Managers, an Australian-based funds management group. He has worked as a policy economist, business strate-
gist and investment market professional for nearly 30 years after starting his career as a federal treasury economist in Canberra, Australia
Tim Treadgold
Perth, Western Australia
Insight: Services
Nadav Shemer
Assistant editor
I
nvestors are more afraid of Greenland’s nascent
mining industry than they should be, in the view
of Golder Associates’ arctic expert Hans Christian
Krarup.
The global consultancy has been involved in the
Arctic for four decades, and recently added marine
biologist Lars Brunner to an Arctic services team that
includes Denmark country manager Krarup, ice and
ocean specialist Marc O Hansen, and Norway-based
project director Vidar Ellefsen.
Brunner was previously chief advisor for a consul-
tancy in Greenland, a jurisdiction where Golder is cur-
rently advising three companies and which Krarup
said was more straightforward than anywhere else in
the Arctic.
“In the Western world, Greenland would definitely
be one of the quickest places to get permits through,”
Krarup said.
“In Sweden, it can often take 18 months to get an Greenland will most likely not have previous experi- Greenland is an easy
approval process, but it could take 36 months. Like- ence from similar projects and especially not in a new place for companies to
wise in Canada you can have this hearing process area like Greenland. get regulatory approvals,
back and forth between the public, regulators and “They’ll probably only have one project, a project Golder’s Hans Christian
aboriginal groups. that isn’t fully developed and they would therefore Krarup says
“Greenland is pretty straightforward, so if you have need guidance and experience from companies that
a good plan, some good investors, and you do a have the local and technical knowledge to guide
proper job on the permitting, the environmental them through the process.
parts and so on, then there’s basically nothing to hold “Unfortunately, we’ve had to get projects back on
you back.” track after other companies who obviously didn’t
Krarup nominated northern Norway as the other have either the technical knowledge or the local
place with potential for the mining industry, saying insight. It’s a waste of money, you have to go twice,
his consultancy was starting to see openings of inter- your investors start asking questions and so on, so
est in the traditionally oil and gas-focussed country. that part is tricky. Choosing the right people to guide
Ultimately, commodity prices would be the main you is crucial to ensure that your project develops on
driver for investors, Krarup said, adding that all eyes time and to the desired state.”
were on London Mining’s Issua iron-ore project, “and But he emphasised that the challenges were noth-
that one just needs huge investments” in order to ing new – given that mining had been conducted
obtain exploitation rights. beyond the Arctic Circle for at least a century. “It’s not
Golder has been involved in mining in “basically a new business,” he said, but the companies of today
all” of the eight Arctic jurisdictions, each of them with were far more aware of their social and environmen-
their own idiosyncrasies that require companies to tal responsibilities than they were in the past. “You
seek local expertise, according to Krarup. hear some NGOs – they are a very strong voice – say
“Perception of risk and effects is highly based on no one wants industry up there. This is not true at all.
perspectives. Popularly speaking in Canada you can Of course they [residents of Arctic communities] want
do anything onshore, [but] when you go offshore people to behave responsibly, in how they conduct
people get a little concerned. In Norway you can do their business, but ultimately having responsible
anything offshore, but when you go onshore they get businesses getting involved will be one of the ways
a bit concerned. Neither approach is more correct to secure the lifestyle that they want for their people.
than the other, but it does illustrate how industries “Take into consideration that in harsh winters you
have to understand the local content and concerns.” can’t always get supplies to those areas… if they get
Over the years Krarup has seen a lot of projects, more buying power, rather than borrowing or trad-
and the most common mistake he has seen is from ing or selling some of the things they catch or kill
junior exploration companies that are too price- from hunting, it gives them different options.
focused. “Many people in local societies are welcoming this
“Newcomers to frontier development [regions] like being done in a proper way - [through] engagement.”
T
he European Union (EU) remains highly de-
pendent on imports of raw materials, essen-
tial not only for the European industrial re-
naissance but also for the region’s overall economic
and social development.
If it is to remain competitive in the global market
and meet society’s needs, it urgently needs to
reduce its dependency on imports of raw materials,
promote production and exports and bring Europe
to the forefront in the raw materials sector.
The Athens Declaration on sustainable access to
resources, which promotes best practices in miner-
als policy and legal framework, land-use planning
and permitting, was adopted in June 2014 to
encourage EU member states to establish adequate
Euromax Resources
Company summary
Euromax Resources Ltd. (TSX-V: EOX) is developing the Ilovitza copper-gold porphyry
project located in south-east Macedonia. With an EIS already approved, the benefit of
excellent regional infrastructure, impressive local support and a comprehensive financing and development plan in place, the
company is uniquely positioned to build what will be the first greenfield project in the Balkans for over 30 years.
announced – NPV of
> European gold investment opportunity
> Copper and gold production within four years
Contact
Euromax Resources Ltd
Karen Coke,
Investor Relations Manager,
Euromax Resources,
12 Berkeley St, London W1J 8DT, UK
E-mail: kcoke@euromaxresources.co.uk
www.euromaxresources.com
Continues from page 14 Construction and commissioning Gabriel Resources Ltd and 19.31% by the Romanian
Greater clarity surrounding the relationship of underground crusher government. Despite progress by RMGC, having
between certain endorsements required under and conveyor system at the successfully worked with all decision-makers to ful-
zonal planning laws; Chelopech mine in Bulgaria fil the environmental and socio-economic assess-
Reassurance to mining companies that an exploi- ment, the permitting process for Rosia Montana is
tation concession licence would be insulated still awaiting government approval.
throughout its term from any subsequent modifica- Even in such a difficult context, which caused the
tions of the applicable legal framework; and, company to adopt retrenchment measures in the
A simplified procedure to acquire surface rights first half of 2014, it remained “fully committed to
and clarify the legal framework concerning urban- identify, prevent and mitigate any unfavourable
ism certificates and their relationship with other impacts this process would have on the local com-
permits and approval processes. munities’ and properly manage the impact of such
“If these deposits decisions toward all affected stakeholders, beyond
The bill was debated in the Romanian parlia- were exploited, basic legal requirements”.
ment, the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies, but According to an official company statement,
failed to receive a majority vote. Romania could despite being forced to lay off 80% of its workforce,
In January 2014, the government stated its inten- produce around “it remains willing to invest significant financial
tion to continue modifying the existing mining law resources to build the first modern gold and silver
and establish a proper sustainable mining sector,
20Mt/y of ore, mine in Romania and hopes that the current
ensuring resource efficiency, a stable and predicta- equivalent to restructuring process represents just a temporary
ble legal and regulatory structure, transparency measure until such time as the government
and integrity. However, to date, no legislation has
around 15% of the approves the mining project”.
been presented to parliament on this matter. EU’s total mineral In the meantime, other mining investors are
Moreover, in November 2013, the government resource needs” probably keeping an eye on Romania to see how
this long story turns out. Historically, mining has
issued an emergency ordinance to amend the fiscal
code and provide a new set of royalties applicable always been an important job generator, bringing
to mineral resources to be applied from 2014 upon in about 1 million direct and indirect jobs before
either the conclusion of a licence or the issuance of 1990. This number has drastically decreased in the
a mining permit. past 25 years, with just a little over 2,500 people
For noble metals, including gold, a royalty of 6% working in the metals and mining sectors in 2012,
of mining production value is to be applied under according to the country’s national institute of sta-
the government’s new emergency ordinance. How- tistics.
ever, until parliament approves the emergency From the most recent political declarations, it is
ordinance, the existing royalty rate of 4% will con- clear that mining is recognised as an important
tinue to apply. industrial sector. Economics minister Constantin
Nita stated during a visit in Alba County at the end
Political support of May 2014, that “some mines could be reopened”.
While the legislative framework is still waiting for a Meanwhile, the prime minister, Victor Ponta also
major facelift, a number of large mining projects added to the debate, saying “it would be better for
are also waiting for firm political decisions to ena- Romania to exploit all natural resources, including
ble them to get off the ground once and for all. The gold, if all environmental requirements are met, but
most-talked about project by far is Rosia Montana, this process needs clear political support”.
one of the largest undeveloped gold deposits in Romanian prime minister Victor Right now, Romania is waiting to close the gap
Europe, currently in its 10th year of assessment. Ponta says that the natural between political declarations, clear decisions and
The project is operated by Rosia Montana Gold resources industry in the country updated legislation. Until then, the re-launch of
Corporation (RMGC), owned 80.69% by Canada’s needs “clear political support” Romania’s mining sector remains just an aspiration.
Breaking
The Gorubso-Madan lead and zinc mine, oper-
ated by local company Varba-Batantsi AD, is one
mine that is due to come on stream. After a difficult
few years when operations at the mine were sus-
pended due to financial debts by the previous Boundaries!
owners and labour disputes over unpaid wages,
Varba-Batantsi acquired a 90% stake in the mine in > World's leading geochemical analysis group
March 2012 and paid miners their wage arrears,
> Industry leading turnaround time
totalling some US$800,000.
Then early last year Bulgaria’s anti-trust watch- > Unrivalled consistency of accuracy and precision
dog finally gave Varba-Batantsi the green light to
acquire the remaining 10% stake in the operations > ISO 9001:2008 and 17025:2005 Accredited
and the mine is set to start producing by the end of Analysis
July. > Expert Mine Site Laboratory Services, Metallurgy
and Mine-related Environmental Analyses
Copper country
Although not a new mine, the Ellatzite copper
mine, owned by Ellatzite-Med AD, which is part of Eastern Europe is served by
construction group Geotechmin OOD, continues to ALS Minerals labs in Romania,
ramp up production and generated around 48Mt Get the Serbia, Sweden and Finland.
of copper last year. latest
Elsewhere, Dundee Precious Metals Inc contin- in news
ues apace at the Chelopech mine, which produces and Contact us to discuss cost-effective solutions:
copper concentrate containing gold and silver.
analysis E: Europe.NorthAfrica@alsglobal.com
Following an extensive mine and mill expansion
project in 2013, the underground mine processed
on our W: www.alsglobal.com
Members from Euromines, the recognised representative of the European metals and minerals mining industry, contributed to this article. Ivan Andreev,
executive director of the Bulgarian Chamber of Mining and Geology, contributed to the Bulgarian section
Photo: Euromax Resources
C
ash-strapped Serbia is looking to its long- Once the central component of the Socialist Fed-
dormant mining industry to help it avoid be- The state is building a new eral Republic of Yugoslavia, Serbia is yet to fully
coming the next Greece by paving the way smelter at Bor recover from the federation’s breakup and subse-
for a cavalcade of foreign companies to conduct Fast Facts Serbia quent ethnic wars, NATO bombing campaign and
mineral exploration activities. territorial dismemberment. Alexsandar Vucic, who
Leading the charge is Canada-listed firm Reser- was sworn in as prime minister in April, has warned
voir Minerals Inc, with a dozen exploration projects Serbia could go bankrupt within a year. He has
covering base and precious metals. Most of this reportedly approached former British Labour min-
activity is in the copper- and gold-rich Timok Mag- ister Lord Mandelson to act as an advisor for the
matic Complex in eastern Serbia, an area encom- country’s EU bid, because Tony Blair was consid-
passing the century-old Bor mining and smelting ered “too expensive”.
complex where the state is constructing a new flash With gross domestic product of US$42.5 billion in
Capital: Belgrade
smelter with partial funding by Export Develop- 2013 and 30% unemployment, it is no wonder Ser-
Population: 7.2 million
ment Canada. bia is seeking to attract mining companies. There
Real GDP growth:
To understand the state of Serbia’s mining indus- are no restrictions on foreign ownership, the corpo-
2% (2012 est)
try – it was only in the 2000s that modern explora- rate tax rate is 15%, and copper-gold production is
Currency: Serbian dinar
tion techniques were reintroduced after a Continues on page 23
After the boom … Australia’s exploration and mining Next issue’s feature
investment prospects after the country’s biggest ever
investment boom
mining-journal.com/reports Media
Reservoir Minerals
Where
RMC will
Project name(s): Cukaru Peki / be drilling
Leskovo / Nikolicevo its own
ground
Project location: Serbia, Europe
Commodity / resources: Copper, gold
Company summary
Canadian-listed Reservoir Minerals (TSX-V:RMC) is a
well-funded mineral exploration company with properties in southeast Europe and central West Africa. The company’s main
focus is on the highly prospective Timok belt in eastern Serbia, where Reservoir in joint venture with Freeport-McMoran made
the world-class Cukaru Peki copper-gold discovery in 2012. Reservoir is now preparing to drill its 100%-owned Timok permits
this summer, including the Nikolicevo permit adjacent to the Cukaru Peki discovery and is considered by Reservoir to be highly
prospective for the discovery of copper-gold mineralisation.
www.reservoirminerals.com
little grain – it’s pretty unusual in the 21st century of hundred million GREENFIELD MINE DESIGN
ENGINEERING
to discover a couple of hundred million tonnes of a
mineral never described before.” tonnes of a mineral TO MINE CONSALTING
GREENFIELD
The world’s second-largest miner has reported never described CLOSURE BROWNFIELD
positive results from tests at its pilot plant in Cali-
fornia. It reported producing high-quality boric
before”
acid and lithium carbonate from bulk samples
taken from Jadar, and said the processing of these
and other Jadarite by-products within Serbia could
position the country to supply regional demand for
these resources that are used in energy-efficient
construction materials, the hi-tech industry, and in
electric vehicles.
Avala’s deposit is the other significant discovery
in Timok, a region where the Serbian government
initiated geological mapping in 1933, and where Terragold&co specialty is conducting of permitting process
for geological exploration and start of exploitation at
geophysical and geochemical surveys were under- G re e n f i e l d a n d B ro w n f i e l d m i n e s i n S e r b i a .
taken over various periods until 1985. The Timok
Mobile: +38164 220 8624
gold project, located immediately to the west of
TERRAGOLD
Mining Services Directory For more information on advertising on these pages, contact our sales team:
m l con
INTERNATIONAL LIMITED
mineral
industry
consultants
Comprehensive Global Business, Visit us online for more: www.mining-journal.com Management Consultants
Management, Financial and Technical
to the
Advisory Consulting Services in all Aspects
Resources Industry
of the Minerals Industry
www.dolbear.com Creativity,
Strategy, Experience…
IMC Group Consulting Limited
A WORLD OF EXPERIENCE
Tel: +44 (0)207 953 0215 www.oysterconsulting.com
London @ dolbear.com
Toronto
TORONTO
Denver
DENVER
London
LONDON
Vancouver
V ANCOUVER
Quebec
Q City
UEBEC CITY
CSA Global
Contact us:
Tel: +44 (0)1623 726 166
Email: mining@imcgcl.com
www.imcgcl.com We provide feasibility studies, ESIAs and due
diligence for mineral assets including exploration
through to development, operation and mine closure.
Now you can read Europe & Central Asia Consulting Practices
CSA_MJ_Classifieds_Generic_2014.inddMining
1 Magazine
20/02/2014 11:42:24 AM Kazakhstan www.srk.kz
wherever you are Serving the World's Mining Industry Since 1983
Russia
Sweden
www.srk.ru.com
www.srk.se.com
Open Pit Mine Planning Turkey www.srkturkiye.com
Ore Reserve Modeling United Kingdom www.srk.co.uk
Feasibility Studies & Project Evaluation
Visit: app.miningmagazine.com then 3650 East Gas Road / Tucson, Arizona 85714 USA
download the app and latest issue from Tel: (520) 294-9861 FAX: (520) 294-9865
the App Store. www.imctucson.com
Min
ing
for Min
ing A Consultancy Group, based in the UK, requires
a Senior Mining Engineer to work on multi-
for
Knowledge
Supplements
wardell-armstrong.com Unique solutions for the global
Tel: +44 (0)1872 560738 mining industry
Tailor-made publications created by the world’s top
Consultants to the Minerals Sector mining media team. Customers include governments,
Offices: UK, Almaty, Moscow
resource companies, agencies and institutions.
n Risk
n Mining
n Geotech
n Geology
n Valuation
n Processing
n Technologies
n Environment
Market update
0
Aluminium 1600
Aluminium-alloy Cash 1995 0.5 10.5 Rhodium (J Matthey)
Ruthenium (J Matthey)
1125
68
0.9
-2.9
12.5
-20.0
July 2013 July 2014 3 months 2000 0.7 8.7
Copper Cash 7121 2.7 2.9
800000 3 months 7118 3.0 2.9 Shipping rates
700000
Copper 8800
Lead Cash 2160 0.9 5.0 Representative dry cargo single voyage rates (June 18)
8360 3 months 2192 1.1 5.9 Route/Size (’000 dwt) % change % change
600000 19790 6.3 43.4 Coal US$/t on week on year
Nickel Cash
500000 7920
3 months 19848 6.0 43.1 Richards Bay-ARA (100-150) 8.4 -1.8 6.9
Tin Cash 22825 1.9 13.7 E Aus-South Korea (120-160) 11.7 0.4 9.3
400000 7480
3 months 22863 2.0 13.8 E Aus-ARA (100-150) 20.6 -8.2 71.4
300000
7040 Zinc Cash 2230 2.3 20.4 Hay Pt-China (100-150) 10.5 7.7 7.1
200000 3 months 2234 2.2 19.1 Iron ore
6600 Source: Bloomberg, LME Narvik-ARA (100-150) 4.9 1.0 25.6
100000
Brazil-ARA (100-150) 8.6 1.7 -8.8
0
July 2013 July 2014
6160 LME official averages Brazil-China (100-150) 22.0 2.8 16.5
June 1-30 (US$/t) W Aus-China (120-160) 7.8 -4.1 -1.8
Settlement Cash 3-mths W Aus-ARA (120-160) 11.1 1.4 3.7
350000 25000
Aluminium 1834.4 1834.15 1868.55 Saldanha Bay-China (100-150) 15.5 8.8 17.9
300000 Alum-alloy 1973.05 1969.94 1982.04 Source: Drewry Shipping Consultants Ltd
Copper 6806.1 6805.8 6777.36
250000
20000 Lead 2103.31 2102.92 2129.1 Bulk minerals
200000 Nickel 18573.57 18568.22 18650 US$/t % change
150000 Tin 22773.81 22767.62 22764.64 on year
Zinc 2126.79 2126.47 2130.96 Rutile Aus export fob (April 2014)+ 925 -26.0
15000
100000 Settlement £/US$ US$/¥ €/US$ Ilmenite export fob (April 2014)+ 149 -37.9
50000
exchange rates 1.6904 102.05 1.3592 Zircon export fob (April 2014)+ 1075 -12.2
Nick
Nickel Settlement is the average of the cash sellers’ price. Cash and
three-months are the average of the buyers’ and sellers’ price.
globalCOAL RB™ Index (May 2014)‡ 75.84 -7.5
0 10000 globalCOAL NEWC™ Index (May 2014)‡ 73.88 -15.4
July 2013 July 2014 Source: LME
Source: † monthly from TZ Minerals International Ltd
1200000 2250 Exchange stocks ‡ Global Coal Ltd (www.globalcoal.com)
Leading indicators 35 35
July 3 Last % change % change
US$/lb
on week on year
1100 Dow Jones
July 2013 July 2014 Industrial Average 17046.85 1.19 13.73
Nikkei 225 15348.29 0.26 9.20
Source: Ux Consulting
30 30
1600
Platinum Hang Seng
HSBC Global Mining
23531.44
436.49
2.91
3.11
16.80
23.66
FTSE Gold Mines 1496.80 3.54 22.78
FTSE/JSE Africa Gold 1607.22 2.61 11.98
S&P/ASX 300 Resources
S&P/TSX Diversified 4168.45 1.96 17.52 25 July 2014
25
July 2013
Metals/Mining 6780.31 6.40 28.66
3500 1900
1300 3000
July 2013 July 2014
26 Silv
Silver 2500
US$/t
US$/t
24 1800
2000
22
1500
20 10 years /
ALUMINIUM 2 months
1700
18 1000 July 2004 April 30, 2014 July 3, 2014 July 2014
July 2013 July 2014
Finance
500
July 2013 July 2014 All data on this page sourced from Bloomberg unless otherwise stated
Technology
Running on empty
The mining industry can turn, ‘do more with less’ from an empty slogan into a sound business strategy
Shawn Lyndon “The mining industry is facing a confidence crisis,”
ABB
PwC global mining leader Tim Goldsmith has said.
What is happening right now in mining “is not a pen-
M
ining has been synonymous with riches dulum swing, it’s a seismic shift”, said Deloitte in its
since the beginning of recorded history. Tracking the Trends 2014 report.
That reputation certainly held true during Most industry experts agree the time-honoured
the first decade of the 21st century, when the indus- historic solution – hurriedly finding more stuff to
try soared. But today, mining is just the latest of once- mine – will not work anymore. As with most indus-
impregnable industries to be shaken by the realities tries, today in mining it is all about increasing the pro-
of doing business in a globalised, connected world. ductivity of existing assets and boosting efficiency to
Costs of extraction, production and transportation reduce operating costs: the dreaded ‘do more with
are up, prices are soft, demand is fickle and stock val- less’ imperative.
ues have swooned. As The Wall Street Journal said in a This once-chilling maxim is actually good news.
recent report on an erstwhile Australian boom town Being forced to do more with less offers mining an
wilting in a coal-mining bust, “the party is starting to opportunity to leap into a new age of innovation that
end”. promises even richer levels of success and prosperity.
Industry analysts see the challenges as structural, Leveraging existing and emerging technologies, there
not just cyclical. is a way to turn ‘do more with less’ from an empty –
Where MOMS
EPR system
fits in the mine-
management
software
hierarchy Document control Scheduling and optimisation Maintenance
Technology
and dispiriting slogan – into a real-world strategy. Africa growth channel for Microsoft
Let’s start with the industry’s biggest cost, mainte-
nance, which accounts for 30-to-50% of total operating South African Microsoft agent AccTech ICT NOTEBOOK
expenses, according to Global Mining. But mainte- Systems has formed a venture with the
nance run as high as 70% of total operating costs. software giant, deploying its Dynamics
How do the vast majority of mining companies try NAV and GP products and services
to hold down the cost of maintenance? By using a through the newly formed Dynamics
time-honoured array of disparate, siloed operational Africa Services. laser imaging systems, Athy Kalatzis,
systems that generate tons of data that is rarely inte- AccTech said it had signed an said.
grated, analysed and refined into actionable intelli- independent software vendor (ISV) I-Site software handles huge data
gence to answer Maintenance Question No.1: What’s agreement with Microsoft. Dynamics sets from detailed laser imaging, with
the business cost/benefit of fixing or replacing an Africa Services is headed by AccTech’s the Studio 5.0 product featuring a
asset now, or waiting until later? former chief marketing officer, Nick ‘Level of Detail’ tool that automatically
That question is getting potentially easier to answer Botha. “One of our main objectives of allows a manageable amount of data to
as more and more data flows from connected devices signing up Dynamics Africa is to help us be loaded and viewed. The new
reporting to operational systems in real time – the grow our already substantial GP and Workflow Manager saves a series of
Internet of Things. The potential to answer becomes NAV base, not only in South Africa, but transactions that are then shared and
the answer by combining data from these operational also in Africa,” Microsoft South Africa adapted within survey teams, according
systems with information technology’s business intel- Dynamics director Kethan Parbhoo said. to the developer.
ligence, analytics and financial information. The products are among the core “This enables standard work
Take a haul truck: combining operational technol- components of Microsoft’s Dynamics processes to be implemented across an
ogy (OT) data beaming from that truck’s connected customer relationship management organisation – driving productivity,
sensors, with information technology (IT), can answer (CRM) and enterprise resource planning efficiency and accuracy. Workflows can
such fundamental, business-critical questions as: (ERP) business-management software be launched from custom toolbars, and
“What’s the economic impact of one cylinder on that grouping. the status of the current process is
truck not working?” Or: “Would it cost more to fix it or AccTech Systems chief executive conveniently highlighted.
replace it?” “Should we fix or replace now, or wait?” Tertius Zitzke said Dynamics Africa “The result is efficient handover
“What does this flow of information say about our Services would aim to develop and grow between crews for routine site
entire maintenance strategy?” deployment of the Microsoft product applications,” Maptek said.
Experienced mining hands may snort at the lines in Africa through the developer’s Kalatzis said as well as being a valuable
concept of integrating OT with IT. In many compa- existing partner channel and through training tool, standardised workflows
nies, the operations folks and the IT folks do not the acquisition of new partners. improved the quality of results.
even like each other because they are in a constant “The depth of our knowledge of
struggle for ownership, which is obviously self- technology in the markets we serve has IES on schedule
destructive. established credibility and respect. We A powerful “next-generation” mine
One sterling exception is Cliffs Natural Resources know our customers’ business needs, planning and management simulator
Inc, the international mining company, that has a the trends impacting their industries developed by Australia’s CRC ORE – a
staff position called ‘senior director of IT/OT’. and the processes required to achieve research body sponsored by a number
Cliffs is piloting integrated IT/OT for predictive results,” he said. of large mining houses – is on track for
maintenance on its haul trucks, with hopes of extend- Founded in 1994, AccTech services a commercialisation next year, according
ing the solution to such other key assets as conveyers, range of African markets, from to its designers.
shovels, drills, crushers and SAG mills. agriculture, government and financial The Integrated Extraction Simulator
“Commodity prices are going down and expenses services, to mining and manufacturing. (IES) is set to offer a single software
are going up. The only way we can remain successful platform to be used daily by mine
and competitive is by bringing together, in real time, Survey productivity boost planners to understand long-, medium-
vast amounts of analysed, asset-related data to and short-term effects of evolving ore
reduce our operational and maintenance costs,” says mining and processing patterns and
John Tish, Cliffs IT/OT guru schedules, they say in CRC ORE’s latest
With the rise of the Internet of Things, IT/OT inte- newsletter.
gration is moving swiftly ahead in many industries as “[This]… will transform the way in
a way to, yes, do more with less. Will mining embrace which mineral resources are evaluated
it as well? That’s a crucial question, since mining has Maptek’s I-Site Studio 5.0 and extracted,” the group said.
historically been a late mover. “IES is a result of a substantial
As Mark Cutifani, chief executive of Anglo Ameri- Australian mining software leader commitment by CRC ORE to produce a
can plc, told The Australian newspaper not long ago: Maptek’s focus on workflow and next-generation mining simulator that
“[Mining] is some 20-to-30 years behind other more productivity improvement around the integrates all mining and mineral
progressive sectors in terms of business practices.” use of its main products has yielded processing activities starting from drill
But mining does not have a choice: it has to catch up. I-Site Studio 5.0, new software to and blast, and proceeding through the
The industry must evolve from a focus on getting support its advanced mine laser entire mining value chain to the end of
more out of the ground to a focus on efficiency, ROI scanning technology. the concentration process.
and maximising the health and productivity of exist- “Automating processes helps “[It] overcomes challenges that have
ing assets. Miners that do not embrace the benefits of surveyors generate timely and accurate previously made fast, reliable and
IT/OT integration may not be around very long. survey reports for planning and accurate simulation of mineral
production, with positive impacts on processing challenging and time
Shawn Lyndon is senior vice president and general site productivity,” Maptek manager of consuming,” CRC ORE said.
manager of asset health solutions at Ventyx, part of ABB
W
ith all of the angst and hand wringing we
go through at the antics of our dear leaders,
one does wonder where it all began.
I suppose we do need to begin from the premise
that government is a good thing, despite our misgiv-
ings. Yes a bit of anarchy might seem a splendid
notion when we are full to the back teeth with beer
and bad manners, but when morning comes we give
thanks there is someone out there doing all the
unpleasant jobs that would be all the more unpleas-
ant if they were not done. The lights work, the water
flows, the sewerage is taken away, the hospital
patches us up, the train arrives on time and the bad- US$1 trillion of mineral wealth to be found in Afghan-
dies are kept in check. istan. Amazing stuff, although I do recall at the time
In ancient times, selection of the government was a being a mite sceptical at how they knew this, given I
“I then make reasonably straight forward affair. The biggest, can’t imagine too many of their geos volunteering to
the point that strongest and nastiest would proclaim himself the pop out for a look.
The report was also slightly lacking in advice on
in almost every boss and cut the nuts off anyone who dared suggest
otherwise. Perhaps this did not always throw up the how we might extract this wealth without getting our
jurisdiction best candidate, but was a damn sight cheaper than bits shot off.
where mining holding an election. A few months ago, the USGS again told us with a
And so while on balance we are probably better off, very straight face that there remains 3,500Mt of cop-
takes place, I consider that perhaps their reach has extended some- per still to be found out there in the wider world,
government what beyond what we, the governed, originally some six times greater than all the copper mined
intended. We should, I suppose, not be surprised at through history.
is now seen this – most of us I imagine would view the ideal gov- Oh well, that’s alright then, and here I was thinking
as a barrier to ernment as being one that does all the nasty smelly we were running short. Now where did you say we
jobs but then sods off and leaves us alone to enjoy life. should drill again?
be overcome This is good in theory, but the obvious problem is There does seem a bit of disconnect between what
and risk to be that this does not sound fun, and so the government governments think is important and where we would
people, in payment for doing all the wet work, insist prefer to see them direct their efforts. There seems to
managed” on also being allowed to have a go at some of the fun be a focus on collecting information that we really
stuff as well, like jetting about in Airforce One and don’t need, making rules nobody wants and coming
invading Iraq. Alas, Governments just attract the up with forecasts that have no basis in fact and were
wrong sort of people who take a mile when an inch is clearly just made up to impress the minister.
offered and before you know it, there is all manner of The list of countries where there are legions of gov-
strange stuff being done that one really does suspect ernment staff assessing technical stuff and making
is not really essential. decisions on a company’s future and its rights, despite
I was taken the other week by a piece in the Aus- having no technical or commercial experience, is a
tralian press that breathlessly quoted a just-released long one. We are, it seems, the most monitored
Bureau of Statistics report suggesting that mineral industry on the planet.
exploration in Australia had slumped to record lows. Britain is not a great mining country any longer and
I suppose I shouldn’t be too critical. As a bunch (not so my government chums at the Club don’t pester
sure of the collective noun – a ‘distribution’ perhaps), me with questions, but when, perchance, in my trav-
statisticians are hardly what of we think of when the els I do get asked by someone eager to help what
phrase ‘earth shattering’ comes to mind. they should do, invariably I reply to please just leave
It’s a horrid job, and so full marks to them for get- us alone.
ting it right, but minus a few million marks for timeli- Provide secure tenure, provide the underlying base
ness. I haven’t the faintest idea how much work is data, provide a clear path to production with all the
involved in a study of this sort. requisite environmental and social checks and bal-
I can imagine the authors being quite chuffed with ances and provide a stable taxation base. In other
themselves, the quality of their work and the extraor- words, set the rules and we will follow, but please
dinary insights they had uncovered, but completely don’t try to be involved.
oblivious to the fact that the report was an utter I then make the point that in almost every jurisdic-
waste of time, effort and money in that it simply told tion where mining takes place, government is now
us something we all knew 18 months ago, and did seen as a barrier to be overcome and risk to be man-
not even pretend to provide any solutions, which is aged.
what we would have liked to have seen. Less is more it seems is not a mantra that wins
About 10 years ago, the USGS told us there was votes.
Immediate
access to news,
insight and
analysis
Visit app.mining-journal.com
Media