Evaluacon De Un Proyecto

Section 6 Mine Evaluation and Investment Analysis
D ONALD W. G ENTRY , A SSOCIATE E DITOR
AND

S ECTION C OORDINATOR

6.0 Introduction ....................................................... 387 6.1 Mine Valuation .................................................. 390 6.1.1 Approaches to Mine Valuation............. 390 6.1.2 Purpose of Mine Valuation Studies.. ... 391 6.2 Mine FeasibilityStudies ................................... 393 6.2.1 Data Requirements ................................ 394 6.2.2 Cash Flow Analysis ............................... 396 6.2.3 Time Value of Money ............................ 397 6.2.4 Selecting a Discount Rate.. .................. 399 6.2.5 An Iterative Process .............................. 403 6.3 Costs and Cost Estimation.............................. 405 6.3.1 Estimation of Costs ............................... 405 6.3.2 Assessment of Mining Conditions Affecting Costs ....................................... 405 6.3.3 Cost Guides for Capital Costs of Mining Projects ....................................... 413 6.3.4 Cost Guides for Operating Costs of Mines and Mills ...................................... 421 6.3.5 Conclusion.............................................. 424 6.4 Project Operating Strategy .............................. 425 6.4.1 Introduction ............................................. 425 6.4.2 Project Alternatives................................ 425

6.4.3 Contract Mining Bidding Process.. ....... 6.4.4 Monitoring the Contract Miner ............. 6.4.5 Mine Leasing Process ........................... 6.4.6Joint Venture Process ........................... 6.4.7 Evaluation of Alternatives.. ................... 6.4.8 Corporate Philosophy ............................ 6.5 Investment Analysis ......................................... 6.5.1 Objectives ............................................... 6.5.2 Types of Evaluations ............................. 6.5.3 Investment Criteria................................. 6.5.4 Evaluating Alternatives .......................... 6.5.5 Handling Risk ......................................... 6.5.6 Example Evaluation ............................... 6.6 Mine Financing ................................................. 6.6.1 Financial Objectives of a Mining Company ................................................. 6.6.2 Exploration Funding............................... 6.6.3 Mine Development Funding.. ................ 6.6.4 Operating Mine Financing.. ................... 6.6.5 Mergers and Acquisitions ..................... 6.6.6 Information Requirements ....................

428 437 438 441 446 450 452 452 452 452 459 462 464 470 470 473 475 478 479 479

Chapter 6.0 INTRODUCTION
DONALD W. GENTRY
This section deals with one of the most fascinatingaspects of mining—the evaluation of mine investment opportunities. Before proceeding further, it is important to clarify the meaning of some fundamental terms used frequently in the text. possible factors or variables that are important in establishing the worth of a mining project. In other words, mine evaluation denotes the assessment of the relative economic viability of the mining project orinvestment opportunity. In this regard, estimates of project ore reserves, mining rates, revenues, costs, expected returns and associated risks, etc., as well as the dollar worth, are made for each project or investment opportunity available to the organization. Various aspects of the mine evaluation procedure are discussed in detail in subsequent chapters contained in this section. For instance,Chapter 6.2 discusses mine feasibility studies, Chapter 6.3 describes procedures for estimating capital and operating costs, while Chapter 6.4 deals with project operating strategies.

6.0.1.1 Mine Valuation vs. Evaluation
The words “valuation” and “evaluation” in a mining context are often used interchangeably. However, for the purposes of this section, a distinction is made between the two...