For such an old industry, mining remains relatively enigmatic to new prospectors or early operations in today’s economics. With complex geophysical and geochemical testing, ever-changing regulations and claims, reporting and processes, as well as the complications of risk and profitability analyses, mining is not as simple as panning for gold in a California river anymore.
Enter mining consultants. You’ve probably heard the axiom that you need to “know what you don’t know” to succeed in business, and mining is no different. Even the most successful and well-established mining operations rely on outside experts for geophysical surveys, lab work, feasibility studies, resource modeling, and even mine recruiting and staffing services. Mining consultants help improve the opportunity for success of a mining operation by bringing the tools, knowledge, team, and operational strategy to fill out an exploration or mining project quickly, efficiently, and expertly.
WHAT IS MINING CONSULTING?
Mining consulting is a high-level expert service that provides provisional strategy, expertise, and services to elevate the opportunity for success in a mining or exploration project. Mining consulting helps to “round out” an exploration project or mining operation with expertise and services that the operation could not otherwise efficiently or effectively bring in-house.
Mining consulting includes a wide range of services that aid in every stage of the mining process from prospecting to operations and through reclamation. Whether at the exploration stage of a project or maximizing operational success, a mining consultant helps decrease risk, minimize waste, and improve project value and success.
WHAT DOES MINING CONSULTING LOOK LIKE?
Due to the nature of mining consulting, the consulting process looks different for each different company. Projects in the earliest stages will likely start closer to the top of the list while existing operations will utilize services best in line with their goals, challenges, or specific needs.
STEP 1: EVALUATION
The first step in the mining consulting process is to determine the project needs. This is effectively the conversation in which you flesh out what you’re able to accomplish and what is required from external providers to achieve your goals.
STEP 2: EXPLORATION & PROSPECTING
From geophysical services to exploration targets, claim staking, mine permitting, and more, this is one of the most important stages of a mining project. It is common to engage a mining consultant during this stage of a project as it determines whether a site is worth mining or not. Picking the wrong site can waste resources while missing the right site can be a missed opportunity.
STEP 3: MINE PLANNING & ASSESSMENT
This stage of mining consultation helps to ensure the most effective, profitable, and efficient operation possible. Starting with the proper permitting and resource modeling, mining consultants will help design the most effective mine and operation for success.
This is typically the most robust piece of a mining consultant’s expertise, encompassing a range of due diligence and strategy building. It often includes the following:
- Resource modeling
- Risk analysis
- Mine planning
- Market analysis and strategy
STEP 4: CONTRACT LABOR
The success of the mine depends not only on the strategy, but also on the quality of the workers executing the strategy. A good mining consulting company will have an extensive network of mining and geology experts to provide contract labor services to staff your operation for success.
STEP 5: OPERATIONAL STRATEGY
While initial studies help to inform drilling strategy, there should be ongoing strategy to continue to optimize operations and mitigate risks. This helps to ensure the project continues to operate at peak profitability.
ABOUT RANGEFRONT MINING SERVICES
Rangefront provides expert mining consulting services for projects of every scale and stage of the mining process. With some of the top mining experts in the industry, Rangefront helps ensure your operation is running as smoothly—and profitably—as possible.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
BRIAN GOSS
President, Rangefront Mining Services
Brian Goss brings over 20 years of experience in gold and mineral exploration. He is the founder and President of Rangefront, a premier geological services and mining consulting company that caters to a large spectrum of clients in the mining and minerals exploration industries. Brian is also a director of Lithium Corp. (OTCQB: LTUM), an exploration stage company specializing in energy storage minerals and from 2014 to 2017, he fulfilled the role of President and Director of Graphite Corp. (OTCQB: GRPH), an exploration stage that specialized in the development of graphite properties. Prior to founding Rangefront, Brian worked as a staff geologist for Centerra Gold on the REN project, as well as various exploration and development projects in the Western United States and Michigan. Brian Goss holds a Bachelor of Science Degree with a major in Geology from Wayne State University in Michigan.
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