The ‘Uberization of mining’ is worth $425 billion over next 10 years, conference told – by Sunny Freeman (Financial Post – March 8, 2017)

http://business.financialpost.com/

More than $400 billion is at stake in the “Uberization of mining,” as disruption from outside and inside the resources industry forces change in one of the sectors most resistant to change, a former World Economic Forum director said Tuesday.

Gillian Davidson, the former head of mining and metals at the WEF and now chair of sustainability committee at Lydian International told a panel at the Prospectors & Developers of Canada convention that in the next 10 years some $425 billion is at stake for industry — value for players to capture or that could migrate to emergent players.

Among 21 industries studied in a WEF report, mining was most resistant to disruption, she said, adding that if the industry doesn’t change from within, forces from outside it will cause transformation anyway.

Technological change could also help capture about $30 billion worth of carbon dioxide and save 1,000 lives in the next 10 years. On the flip side, about five per cent of jobs are at risk due to automation, she added.

“For an industry that was slow to come around to the conversation, we’re having really dynamic conversations especially within the C-suite.” Michelle Ash, chief innovation officer at Barrick Gold Corp. was one of the first in the industry to recognize the importance of embracing digital disruption.

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