This book starts with conversions. Although the metric system is being adopted worldwide, older data from Anglo-American countries will always be non-metric. Any deposit evaluation should be based on solid historical research. Many deposits have a long exploration history. Meticulous investigation of older data often answers many questions and avoids mistakes.
In addition, uncommon units used in the raw materials field are introduced.

Thereafter the book generally follows the usual steps of an evaluation: Assessment of tonnage and grades; conversion of geological data into mining data; derivation of a commodity price; calculation of return per tonne of ore; determination of optimum mine capacity; estimation of capital and production costs; final economic evaluation as appropriate for early stage projects.

The book ends with four chapters dealing with aspects of general interest to economic geologists and mineral economists: Valuation of exploration projects without mineralization, comparison of deposits, calculations of growth rates and equity

So much work has been done in recent years using geostatistics to solve practical problems that we no longer have to apologise for nor justify the method. The method is as good as the practitioner, which goes, after all, for any technical application. There have been enough case studies now to show that almost any orebody, simple or complex in structure, which has a definable spatial continuity, will be amenable to geostatistical evaluation given that it is suitably sampled.

The process of estimating a Mineral Resource can only take place after the estimator is convinced of the soundness of the fundamentals underlying the estimation process. Thus the database of sampling, density, and other quality data for both estimation and geological interpretation must have integrity and robustness (Chapter 2);

Risk in project evaluation involves the probability of estimates
failing. There are few more risk prone businesses than mining.
Burmeister (1989) reviewed 35 Australian gold operations which were initiated in the period 1984 to 1987 and found that two-thirds of them had not achieved targeted gold production in the first full year of operation. For those that did exceed target, the overriding reason was a higher than anticipated plant throughput. Only two out of the 35 achieved their projected recovered grade. Burmeister observed that the reasons for the shortfall in grade included excessive dilution, inappropriate estimation techniques, inadequate geological interpretation, unreliable assays and inadequate drilling.  <...>

The CIM Estimation of Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves Best Practice Guidelines (MRMR Best Practice Guidelines) were prepared by the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum's (CIM) Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves Committee (CIM MRMR Committee) to update an earlier version that was accepted by CIM Council on November 23, 2003 (CIM, 2003). These 2019 MRMR Best Practice Guidelines supersede and replace the November 23, 2003 version of the MRMR Guidelines <...>

Narrow veins—defined as having a true width of less than 3 m—represent a significant source of gold, which is often exploited by junior or small- to medium-size companies. Their inherent geological and grade complexities create particular problems of evaluation.

Gold (Au) is a transition metal between Ag and Rg in the chemical series of the Periodic Table. Its atomic number is 79, and atomic mass 196.96655 (2) g/mol, and has only one stable isotope number 197. The gold isotype 198Au (half-life 2.7 days) is used in some cancer treatments. The metal has been known and prized as an object of beauty and for its unique properties of chemical stability, electrical conductivity, malleability and ductility (trivalent and univalent) since mankind's earliest awakenings. As a standard of value against which to appraise the costs of labour, goods, currency and national economy, it has been the standard of many currencies since the world's first coinage in Lydia between 643 and 630 BC. The name for gold is derived from the historic English word `geolo', for yellow and the chemical symbol for gold Au, from the Latin name for gold `aurum' (glowing dawn). <...>

Рассмотрены цели и специфика геологоразведочного производства, определена роль экономической оценки месторождений в геологоразведочном деле, приведены основные требования к экономико-математической модели планирования геологоразведочных работ и экономической оценки разведуемых месторождений.

Chapter 1 | An Overview and Outline

Overview

Managing Risk in Feasibility Studies

Common Sense and Good Communication – Effective Team-Based  estimation and classification of mineral resources and ore reserves

JORC and the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum  definition standards – major changes and developments for Competent Person

Chapter 2. The resource database