Geologists are ... by Robert Friedland19 Jan 2021 08:32
Geologists are the gods' of mining, says Friedland
ROBERT Friedland, who has backed the teams that have made some of the world's biggest mineral discoveries, articulated a religious-like reverence for mineral explorers during a keynote address to the virtual AME Roundup overnight.
Robert Friedland is optimistic the impending global post-COVID economic recovery will be a boon for mines
• Exploration / Development > Events-coverage
• 19 January 2021
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Henry Lazenby
"It's a deepest honour to talk to explorationists, because in our world, the geologists are the gods," he said from his base in Singapore.
"In our world, that's where it all comes from. There's more wealth created in the discovery than sitting there tweaking those little dials for 40 years and actually mining."
He likened the explorers to the R&D divisions of major tech firms.
"Juniors are where all the ideas come from."
Friedland said the global mining industry was in the opening innings of massive investment towards a low-carbon economy, something that got somewhat sidetracked by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Ivanhoe Mines chairman proclaimed this was "the beginning of the revenge of the miners - there are going to be some clear winners among the elements in the periodic table in the economic recovery to follow."
He expects the global economic electrification drive and massive government spending plans such as the ‘green new deal' will start gaining traction from 2023-2025 and involve anything between US$50-100 trillion in global investment.
He said mining had been down for so long, most investors had forgotten what ‘up' looked like. This had prompted them to jump ship in favour of the technology sector, which did not necessarily mean a loss for mining - the internet of things and its associated disruptive technologies would benefit the exploration and mining space.
"Now that the world has gone through the profound shock of COVID-19, people are realising that there will be huge demand for certain metals in a post-COVID world. This begins the era of ‘the revenge of the miner'," he said.
Friedland also touched on the evolving role of ESG investment principles in upstream supply chains.
He said the countervailing pressure to meet very high ESG standards in mining was going to make the entire enterprise even more interesting and difficult to do properly.
"So, welcome to the new world: The situation is hopeless, but it's not serious for the miners. It is possible to mine responsibly, in a better way, and we as an industry have to find a way to do that," he said.
Friedland said ESG was changing the mining landscape, bringing more inclusivity and diversity.
He expects the days are numbered where the world's most traded commodities, which used to be crude oil, were traded using a single price for specific grades of product. This is driven by the advent of blockchain technology which he said had the ability to disrupt and modernise markets, allowing for me
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