There are a number of industry specific factors that need to be considered when valuing natural resource projects, including:
- The underling mineral reserves, resources or prospectivity of an early-stage project which will determine which valuation methods are available
- The level of assessment applied in studies undertaken on the project (i.e. Scoping Study, Pre-feasibility Study and Feasibility Study) which consider operating costs, capital costs and associated processes to varying degrees of confidence
- The impact of financing
- The appropriate discount rate to apply.
How BDO can help
BDO has worked with a wide range of technical specialists when preparing Independent Experts Reports for public reporting (in accordance with the VALMIN code), and we assist our clients to identify practitioners who will meet the requirements and will be considered suitable by ASIC.
In addition to VALMIN, listed companies need to keep in mind the requirements of Information Sheet 214 (INFO 214) on forward looking statements released by the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC). BDO assist to explain and apply the forward-looking statements outlined in INFO 214, including discussions on:
- The legal requirement that forward-looking statements must be based on reasonable grounds
- How relevant industry codes, ASX Listing Rules and ASIC guidance apply to forward-looking statements
- What is a ‘forward-looking statement’, and how is it different to ‘aspirational statements’ (which do not need to be based on reasonable grounds)
- For reasonable grounds to be established, the JORC Code mineral resource estimates used must be based on a sufficient level of geological knowledge and confidence, and all JORC Code modifying factors must be sufficiently progressed
- How the ‘reasonable grounds’ legal requirement applies to ore reserve and mineral resource estimations
- How the ‘reasonable grounds’ requirement applies to the JORC Code's 'economic' modifying factor if secured funding is not in place
- The disclosure requirements for forward-looking statements and what you can disclose if you do not have reasonable grounds for forward-looking statements
- The requirements for updating forward-looking statements when your company's circumstances change or a project changes hands
- ASIC focus areas when assessing forward-looking statements.
Leveraging our Global Natural Resources team, BDO can assist with your needs in all jurisdictions and across all commodities.