An updated version of one of the mining industry’s key regulatory documents, the Australasian Code for the Public Reporting of Technical Assessments and Valuations of Mineral Assets (the VALMIN Code) has been approved by AusIMM (The Minerals Institute) and AIG (Australian Institute of Geoscientists).
The new VALMIN Code 2015 became effective on 31 January 2016 and is mandatory for members of AusIMM and AIG from 1 July 2016. In the interim period, members can choose to publish their reports in accordance with either the 2005 or 2015 version of the Code as long as it is clearly indicated which version has been applied.
The VALMIN Code 2015 sets out requirements for the technical assessment and valuation of mineral assets and securities for independent expert reports. It provides a set of fundamental principles, minimum requirements and supporting recommendations for the preparation of such reports. It provides guidance, without being mandatory, for reports on petroleum assets and securities. It fits within the regulatory framework comprising the Corporations Act, ASIC Regulatory Guidelines, ASX Listing Rules and the JORC Code (2012). The fundamental principles of the Code remain competence, materiality and transparency with the additional requirements of reasonableness and independence. The Code applies to all public reports and is recommended as the standard for non-public reports as well.
The main changes to the VALMIN Code are:
- Improved structure and clarity of the Code such as having all Code elements in normal text and guidelines in italics in blue boxes to easily distinguish the two.
- Improved alignment with the Corporations Act, ASIC Regulatory Guidelines, the JORC Code (2012) and consistency with industry, financial and reporting standards
- New clarity about VALMIN Practitioners and the required qualifications and experience of each, with differentiation between technical and valuation reports
- More guidance on valuation approaches and methodologies
- Requirement for greater transparency, including mandatory disclosure of fees
- Exclusion of petroleum from the mandatory provisions of the Code (although the Code is suggested as a guide to good practice for public reports dealing with petroleum assets)
A copy of the VALMIN Code 2015 is available here
If you would like more information about the VALMIN Code and the recent changes, please contact us at McGuinnLegal.