Turning a deposit into a mine (Entech interview)

We sat down with a couple of legends, Jill Irvin & Shane McLeay of Entech, the gurus on what’s needed to turn a deposit into a mine.

They taught us about all the tricks in a mining company’s key studies, what makes a good study or bad one, the key numbers to look out for, where clients put the pressure on them, what’s underappreciated about their work & a whole heap more.

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(0:00:00)Introduction

(0:02:24)Scoping vs PFS vs DFS

(0:07:33)Resource confidence for studies

(0:11:10)Exploration targets

(0:13:00)Clues for a bad project

(0:15:00)Managing capex vs optimal design

(0:16:55)Chalice putting up 2 scenarios

(0:18:34)Right amount of money to spend on studies

(0:20:24)Internal studies

(0:22:38)Competitiveness between consultants

(0:26:18)Reviewing other studies

(0:31:34)Refusing to do a study

(0:34:16)Liability

(0:37:15)Evolution of study requirements

(0:38:43)Discount rates

(0:40:00)Rules of thumb for grade

(0:42:18)High grade that doesn't work

(0:43:46)Importance of orebody continuity

(0:46:48)Capex for 3rd world countries

(0:48:39)Owner mining vs contracting

(0:51:54)Geotechnical impact

(0:54:51)Contingency

(0:55:54)Contract tendering

(0:59:22)Metal equivelants

(1:01:58)Best study and most challenging study

(1:05:22)Electrification

(1:07:48)Conveyor systems

(1:12:40)Electrifying open pits