The Business of Exploration

This 11-day intensive in-person course provides the financial tools necessary to operate effectively in the modern mineral exploration business. It includes methods to evaluate mineral projects at various stages of advancement and examines exploration strategies and decision-making for majors and juniors through commodity and project cycles.

Six days (days 2-7) will be taught by Dr. Michael Doggett and will include lectures, case studies and practical group lab exercises. The other five days will include lectures by academic and industry subject experts, group work on real-world project evaluations, labs and project presentations. 
Location: On campus in the Executive Learning Centre, Fraser Building, Laurentian University, Sudbury, Ontario, Canada.
 

• Location: On campus in the Executive Learning Centre, Fraser Building, Laurentian University, Sudbury, Ontario, Canada.
   

By the end of this course, students will be able to:

1. Critically evaluate the basic components of financial markets and the implications of different corporate strategies.
2. Calculate and evaluate the intrinsic value of projects and companies by applying discounted cash flow models and assessing the impact of key inputs.
3. Evaluate competing exploration scenarios and strategies appropriate for each type of company in the mineral exploration industry and recommend a path forward based on technical feasibility, risk assessment, and financial upside.
4. Critically analyze and defend the selection between growth by exploration vs acquisition in the context of metals and industrial minerals producers.
5. Assess the benefits and drawbacks of different types of financing, project development and operational agreements that companies negotiate through the life cycle of a project, from financing and exploration through production and sales to mine closure.
    

What to expect:

This course focused on the business of exploration will begin by addressing the role of exploration and mining companies, followed by exploration and mining financing and financial statements. Moving forward the course will address the interface of science and economics, exploration as an essential component of the mineral business, money and cash flow (net smelter revenues), costs and returns for mining projects. 

On this topic, students will build cash flow models, learning time value and discounting, discounted cash flow metrics, taxation, private royalties and metal streams. Furthermore, the course will discuss sensitivity, risk and targeting, early-stage projects and the junior sector, option agreements and joint ventures. 

It will teach students on topics including working in the junior space and working in the major space, legal, social, Indigenous and environmental frameworks, sustainability and emerging trends. At the end of the course, participants will perform major project presentations.