Title: Impact of development strategies on the value of underground mining projects

Authors: Bryan Maybee, Paul Dunn, Sean Dessureault, David Robinson

Addresses: MIRARCO – Mining Innovation, Laurentian University, 935 Ramsey Lake Road, Sudbury, ON P3E 2C6, Canada. ' Faculty of Science and Engineering, Curtin University of Technology, GPO Box U1987, Perth, WA 6000, Australia. ' Department of Mining and Geological Engineering, The University of Arizona, 1235 E. North Campus Drive, Room 241C (mailing: 229), Tucson, AZ 85721-0012, USA. ' Department of Economics, Laurentian University, 935 Ramsey Lake Road, Sudbury, ON P3E 2C6, Canada

Abstract: Creating maximum value for shareholders within the underground mine planning process under varying economic and technical factors has become a reality. Since a single orebody can be accessed and developed in many ways, the different capital investment strategies used will have various implications on the value that is recognised. This paper illustrates the complexity that must be taken into account when evaluating different mining alternatives, and demonstrates the importance of the access development strategy to the calculation of project value. Through this investigation, the issues faced in applying different valuation techniques to mining projects are identified.

Keywords: mine planning; development strategies; mining project valuation; DCF; discounted cash flow; real options; flexibility; uncertainty recognition; underground mining; capital investment.

DOI: 10.1504/IJMME.2009.027253

International Journal of Mining and Mineral Engineering, 2009 Vol.1 No.3, pp.219 - 231

Published online: 18 Jul 2009 *

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