Since 1999, the Behre Dolbear Group Inc. has compiled annual political risk assessments of the key players in the global mining industry. Over time, our assessment indicates a positive correlation between the growth of a nation’s wealth and the prosperity of its mining industry – only when a country recognizes its critical need to adapt and restructures burdensome policy – will it truly optimize this economic potential.
While our perspective is often considered provocative, it is our intent to highlight countries whose policies and business conditions promote investment growth in the mining sector. Behre Dolbear welcomes continued feedback from our clients and industry professionals alike. Both positive and negative dialogue enables Behre Dolbear to improve its assessment.
This year’s survey, as it has in the past, concentrates on specific countries, regional issues, and notable trends. Geology and mineral potential were not considered, as the fact that exploration, development, and mining activity are occurring confirms the existence of such potential. Only factors relevant to “political risk” have been considered. We do not make an effort to include mitigating factors such as economic returns or an investor’s relevant experience in a particular country as part of our ranking.
The Behre Dolbear Group of companies is comprised of more than 150 professionals based out of 12 offices around the globe. The views expressed herein reflect the collective responses to our annual internal survey. Our professionals’ opinions are valued as they have the unique opportunity to conduct business and evaluate investments within many different countries. In 2012, Behre Dolbear completed 220 projects in over 55 countries.
Our global reach through the depth and diversity of our international involvement continuously builds our perspective on the industry. Our rankings in this annual survey are also based, in part, on confidential sources and public databases. Behre Dolbear has referred to the Index of Economic Freedom (a Wall Street Journal/Heritage Foundation publication), the World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness Report, and publications from Transparency International. Our ranking
by the nature of the factors incorporated in its determination is qualitative, not quantitative.
The 25 countries considered in this year’s survey are ranked based on 7 criteria:
• the country’s economic system
• the country’s political system
• the degree of social issues affecting mining in the country
• delays in receiving permits due to bureaucratic and other issues
• the degree of corruption prevalent in the country
• the stability of the country’s currency
• the competitiveness of the country’s tax policy
Each criterion is rated on a qualitative scale from 1 (worst) to 10 (best) that reflects conditions that promote investment growth in the mining sector. Accordingly, the maximum score attainable for a country is 70 points.
For the rest of this report, click here: http://www.dolbear.com/announcements/2013-ranking-of-countries-for-mining-investment-or-where-not-to-invest