British Columbia’s mineral and coal exploration industry grew last year for the first time since 2012, according to the second annual British Columbia mineral and coal exploration survey conducted by EY, the Government of British Columbia’s Ministry of Energy, Mines & Petroleum Resources (EMPR) and the Association for Mineral Exploration British Columbia (AME).
The survey, released today at Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) Convention in Toronto, found that exploration expenditures across BC totaled $246 million in 2017, up $41 million (20%), from the year before. Gold exploration accounted for $37 million (87%) of that increase, driven by increased activity in the province’s Golden Triangle and Cariboo gold belt regions. Gold’s dominance in BC exploration is consistent with the global trend: gold accounted for more than three-quarters of the year-over-year increase in worldwide exploration expenditure in 2017.
“Last year we saw a revitalization of the BC exploration industry, primarily due to a stronger Canadian economy and an improved commodity price outlook. And, without the impact of the devastating wildfire season, expenditures would have likely been even higher,” says Iain Thompson, EY Canada Mining & Metals Advisory Services Leader. “Looking ahead, we expect these favourable conditions to extend into 2018.”
Other metals also saw a surge in activity. Exploration expenditure on primary-silver projects more than doubled to $9.8 million, while zinc grew by almost 50% to $8.2 million, driven by increasing prices. Coal exploration, however, decreased by 18% or $7 million. This had a significant impact on the province’s Northeast region, where exploration spend declined by almost 75% to $2.4 million.
Source: Mining.com
