Summary of the 105th IOC meeting

Election

In an era defined by volatility and ambiguity, the global mining industry stands at a crossroads. As we confront unprecedented challenges, from fluctuating market demands to environmental concerns and geopolitical shifts, mining professionals must delve into the complexities of our field. To navigate through these challenges the WMC NOC has met in Chile.
This year the 105th IOC meeting was also special because of the election for the WMC chairperson. This year for the next turn Marek Cała was unanimously re-elected.

Discussion

The first presentation was about the European coal outlook by Vladimir Budinsky from EURACOAL. He provided a general perspective on global coal mining with a focus on the coal demand forecast for 2030 and 205 under EU policy. He concluded that European coal users will remain part of the global coal market for two decades or more.

The second speech was about lithium extraction. Sorcia Minerals informed that in 2022 it built the first industrial-scale Direct Lithium Extraction Technology plant in U.S. In December 2023, it reached an agreement to install its plant in a salt flat in the northwestern United States. Last week the plant should be 100% operational.

Leopold Weber has discussed the global graphite supply. Consejo Minero De Chile A G has made a SWOT analysis of the Chilean inning sector. It defined strengths as a privileged mineral endowment, rich mining ecosystem, and qualified workforce. On the other hand, such points as: low and decreasing ore grades, higher production costs, stagnant copper production, and problems with environmental and sectoral permits were also identified.
Hua Guo from CSIRO described the Australian mining sector. He concluded that the Australian mining sector needs to discover new to ensure ongoing production and export. Moreover, he has indicated that Australia’s mining industry is a major pillar of the Australian economy. However, by 2030 it is projected to be the highest emitting sector with a total of 101 Mt CO₂ even with low-emission solutions.

Marek Cała and Joanna Jakóbczyk have discussed slope stability engineering in open-pit mining. Based on the research in Bełchatów and Turów open-pit mines, the key aspects of Slope Stability Engineering were indicated.

Jacek Skiba discussed the ProVam project which focuses on a new methodology that enables the effective minimising of VAM emissions in operating coal mines and Alicja Krzemień provided the information about the GreenJobs Project.