THE GREAT MINING PROJECT LIE—AND WHY YOU MUST BURN IT TO THE GROUND
Look around. The mining industry isn’t just broken—it’s designed to fail. 🚨 80% of mining megaprojects run over budget. 🚨 The average overrun is 43%. 🚨 Billions vanish every year with the same tired excuses. (McKinsey & Co., 2016) 🔹 Carmen de Andacollo Expansion (Teck Resources)—$25M over budget. 🔹 Oyu Tolgoi (Rio Tinto)—$1.45B over, 30 months late. 🔹 Newmont’s Conga Project—$5B dead in the water from regulatory chaos. Why? Because no one has the courage to kill bad projects before they kill themselves. --- THE 5 FATAL LIES OF MINING PROJECTS 1️⃣ “We’ve Done the Risk Analysis” ❌ No, you’ve built a PowerPoint illusion of control. ❌ Your models don’t survive contact with reality. 💀 Geopolitical risk? Ask the execs whose lithium projects just got nationalized. 💀 Community engagement? Ask Pebble Mine why it’s a $6B ghost town. 👉 Real leaders put risk at the core of execution—not in a slide deck. --- 2️⃣ “We Need to Keep the Project Alive” ❌ No, you’re propping up a zombie because no one wants to pull the plug. ❌ Bad projects don’t magically improve with more time and money. 💀 If a project fails the 90-day kill test, abandon it. 💀 If leadership won’t admit failure, they’ve already failed. --- 3️⃣ “We Have a Stakeholder Plan” ❌ No, you have a PR crisis strategy, not real engagement. ❌ Communities aren’t obstacles—they decide if your project lives or dies. 💀 60% of projects stall due to local resistance. 💀 Regulatory shutdowns are the #1 killer of billion-dollar mines. (Ernst & Young, 2021) 👉 If your project doesn’t have community backing from day one, it’s already dead. --- 4️⃣ “We’re Using the Best Tech” ❌ No, you’re using 1990s processes and calling it innovation. ❌ Your competitors are deploying AI and next-gen metallurgy while you optimize spreadsheets. 💀 If your tech isn’t cutting-edge, you’re already obsolete. 💀 The future of mining is being built right now—either you lead or you die. --- 5️⃣ “This Time, We’ll Get It Right” ❌ No, you’re repeating the same cycle and expecting a miracle. 💀 We don’t need another $5B vanity project. 💀 We need projects that pivot, adapt, and actually deliver. --- THE 5 LAWS OF PROJECT SURVIVAL 🔥 1️⃣ If it can’t be prototyped in 90 days, it’s a fantasy. 🔥 2️⃣ If it doesn’t have community buy-in, it’s already dead. 🔥 3️⃣ If the risk model isn’t brutal, you’re flying blind. 🔥 4️⃣ If leadership won’t kill a failing project, replace them. 🔥 5️⃣ If you aren’t embracing cutting-edge tech, you’re digging your own grave. --- ARE YOU THE ONE WHO WILL BREAK THE CYCLE? 🚨 The industry needs ruthless realists. 🚨 The industry needs leaders who don’t tolerate incompetence. 🚨 The industry needs YOU. Are you ready to build what actually works? Or will you keep watching history repeat itself?
