Global Mining Industry Converges on Seattle for SME 2012 to Discuss $1 Trillion Worth of Active Projects

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--If attendance is any indication of market strength, then this week's record attendance at the SME (Society for Mining, Metallurgy and Exploration) 2012 conference held in Seattle, Washington, is a good bellwether for the mining industry. Exhibitors numbered 690, and attendance was expected to surpass 6,000.

Demand for mined resources in both developing and mature countries continues to drive the development of mining projects and is placing upward pressure on commodity prices in 2012. "We are bullish on where metals prices are going and the demand from developing nations like China and India," said Jeffrey Huspeni, VP Asia Pacific Operations for Newmont Mining during the the keynote address.

While the overall feel of the keynote address was upbeat, the conference's keynote speakers expressed concerns about rising exploration and development costs, declining ore grades, and nationalization. Exploration and development expenditures continue to rise, but the frequency of world-class discoveries is decreasing. Global gold production has been relatively flat over the past 10 years (with a slight increase in 2011). Even as new mines are being brought online, the quality of ore grades continues to decline at both new mines and mature mines. High-grade ore sources are scarce. "Despite record expenditures the gold industry in particular has struggled to replace the gold production," said Dave Cole, President and CEO of junior miner Eurasian Minerals (Vancouver, British Columbia).

Project spending for the Metals & Minerals Industry is up more than 50% compared to a year ago, according to Industrial Info's North America Project Spending Index. This is based on the value of active projects that started during the calendar year of 2011 compared to 2010. "Worldwide, we are tracking more than 2,700 mining projects totaling about $1.1 trillion," said Joseph Govreau, Industrial Info's vice president of research for the Metals & Minerals Industry.

Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, and eight offices outside of North America, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle™, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.