Deficiencies and recommendations for public reporting standards for industrial minerals

Abstract

Third party compliant reporting standards govern how mining companies disclose technical information. These reporting standards apply to any public issuer. Mineral resources and mineral reserves are critical in determining the size and quality of the asset base as well as the market value of the company itself. Moreover, companies must present a qualifying technical report in accordance with existing reporting standards as a necessary step, required by lenders and financial institutions. This paper examines issues with public reporting of industrial minerals and the challenges this sector faces garnering the same recognition as other mineral commodities. Differing perspectives regarding main elements of the reporting standards of industrial minerals are presented. These findings prepare the ground for further discussion on what needs to be improved, and how these changes could be achieved.

Keywords

Industrial minerals Mineral economics Reserves and resources reporting

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