The prominent mining jurisdictions such as Australia, Canada, South Africa and a number of other countries have their own reporting standards which are subject to evaluation and refinement from time to time under the aegis of the Committee for Mineral Reserves International Reporting Standards (CRIRSCO). India adopted the United Nations Framework Classification (UNFC) for National Mineral Inventory (NMI) in the year 2000 and extended the use of UNFC for statutory reporting of results of exploration through legislation in 2003.The main objective of the UNFC is to create a National Inventory of Mineral Resources. There are many challenges in applying UNFC as a reporting standard in a country like India where no reporting standards existed till the adaption of UNFC. This paper makes an attempt to evaluate the suitability of UNFC as a reporting standard in the Indian context using the data presented in the exploration reports uploaded by the Indian government agencies for precious metal exploration programs.It has been observed that the reports prepared by the government agencies do not describe in sufficient detail the quality control measures adopted while executing the exploration programs. For example, the details on the procedures adopted in core orientation, borehole deviation surveys, core photography, sampling, sample preparation, assaying and QAQC are often not described in detail. In the absence of a provision for independent auditing of the procedures by a Competent Person in UNFC, the reports prepared by Indian exploration agencies will not be able to create adequate confidence among the investors on the quality of the work carried out. It is necessary to adopt the global best practices at all stages of exploration to ensure transparency, materiality and competence in the system, especially in the exploration programs for non-bulk commodities. An exploration program conducted using the CRIRSCO compliant procedures can be slotted in an appropriate UNFC class for the National Mineral Inventory purpose.
Quality Control Practices in Gold Exploration in India: Comparison with the Global Benchmarks
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The prominent mining jurisdictions such as Australia, Canada, South Africa and a number of other countries have their own reporting standards which are subject to evaluation and refinement from time to time under the aegis of the Committee for Mineral Reserves International Reporting Standards (CRIRSCO). India adopted the United Nations Framework Classification (UNFC) for National Mineral Inventory (NMI) in the year 2000 and extended the use of UNFC for statutory reporting of results of exploration through legislation in 2003.The main objective of the UNFC is to create a National Inventory of Mineral Resources. There are many challenges in applying UNFC as a reporting standard in a country like India where no reporting standards existed till the adaption of UNFC. This paper makes an attempt to evaluate the suitability of UNFC as a reporting standard in the Indian context using the data presented in the exploration reports uploaded by the Indian government agencies for precious metal exploration programs.It has been observed that the reports prepared by the government agencies do not describe in sufficient detail the quality control measures adopted while executing the exploration programs. For example, the details on the procedures adopted in core orientation, borehole deviation surveys, core photography, sampling, sample preparation, assaying and QAQC are often not described in detail. In the absence of a provision for independent auditing of the procedures by a Competent Person in UNFC, the reports prepared by Indian exploration agencies will not be able to create adequate confidence among the investors on the quality of the work carried out. It is necessary to adopt the global best practices at all stages of exploration to ensure transparency, materiality and competence in the system, especially in the exploration programs for non-bulk commodities. An exploration program conducted using the CRIRSCO compliant procedures can be slotted in an appropriate UNFC class for the National Mineral Inventory purpose.
Publication Mode |
Online |
---|---|
Publication Author |
M. K. Devarajan |
Publication Language |
English |
Publication Type |
Conference Paper |
Publication Year |
2021 |
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