This presentation will identify the financial drivers that establish the market value of a mining project and highlight real-world examples of permitting delays and their direct and indirect impacts on a project’s value. Key factors that result in increases in pre-production project and assessment costs, as well as schedule delays that result in deferred cash flow, will be examined. A financial model will be shown that quantifies the potential impacts of these factors on a hypothetical project, with an accompanying sensitivity analysis of each of these factors. The individual and net impacts of issues will be quantified and discussed. Common permitting pitfalls will be identified along with how mitigating strategies can be developed to prevent permitting delays from derailing a resource development project.
Some of the key topics that will be discussed include:
- Financial drivers that determine project value, and the impact of the permitting process on these drivers.
- Examples of mines in Canada and the US that have experienced significant cost escalation associated with permitting delays and the impact of those on project value.
- Strategies for avoiding mine project permitting and environmental assessment delays.
- Strategies for effective engagement and relationship building with Indigenous communities.
Kate Mueller, P.Eng.
Kate is a registered professional engineer and regulatory specialist with over 22 years of experience in the mining industry. Kate’s experience was developed in her time in mining operations, engineering consulting, and regulatory positions with significant time in senior leadership roles. Her experience spans all phases of mining; exploration, project development, regulatory approvals, construction, operations, and care and maintenance compliance. Kate is also a tailings engineer with significant tailings management and oversight experience, which is a critical area to achieve operational excellence in mining. She brings a key understanding of both operations and regulation to assist clients with achieving sustainable and compliant projects.
Ryan Burgess, P.Eng.
Ryan Burgess is a registered professional engineer with over a decade of water management experience in extractive industries. Ryan’s past experiences includes roles in mine site operations, exploration, and water treatment infrastructure design and implementation. With an educational background in mining and mechanical engineering, Ryan has more recently been focused on the intersection of engineering and permitting, bridging the communication and knowledge gaps between technical execution teams and non-technical project stakeholders, and acting as an informational conduit between site operations and mining executives.