Is the industry getting the balance right?
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Sir Mick Davis reflects on how major mining companies need to accept the responsibility to convince investors of the need to invest enough capital to continuously replace what is being mined.
He argues that the recent focus on cost has made the majors more resilient, but he is not convinced that they get the balance right between satisfying fund managers’ demands for dividends, with the ongoing need to commit to huge capex projects over long time horizons, based on very uncertain assumptions.
As a CA, it’s understandable that he blames the ills of the past squarely at the door of mining engineers and geologists!
He argues that the recent focus on cost has made the majors more resilient, but he is not convinced that they get the balance right between satisfying fund managers’ demands for dividends, with the ongoing need to commit to huge capex projects over long time horizons, based on very uncertain assumptions.
As a CA, it’s understandable that he blames the ills of the past squarely at the door of mining engineers and geologists!