Industry concerns over mineral scarcity

Senior executives in 7 major industry segments worldwide "expect their companies to be affected by minerals and metals supply scarcity in the next 5 years," according to a new report from PricewaterhouseCooper.

The key conclusions of the report are:

• Major manufacturing companies consider minerals and metals scarcity as an important issue for their business, but do not see sufficient awareness of this topic among all their stakeholders.
• The risk of scarcity is expected to rise significantly, leading to supply instability and potential disruptions in the next five years, but this also creates opportunities for competitive advantage.
• Because of the crucial nature of these minerals and metals, companies expect that the impact will be felt throughout the entire supply chain.
• Economic and political drivers of scarcity are generally seen as much more important than physical drivers.
• The renewable energy, automotive and high-tech industries have a high level of co-operation with their first-tier suppliers and customers.
• For a large majority of the companies we interviewed, efficiency and collaboration throughout the supply chain are seen as essential to responding to the risk.

Ref: Minerals and metals scarcity in manufacturing: the ticking timebomb - Sustainable Materials Management, 2011, PwC

[Thanks to Jamie Caswell at National Mining Association for bringing the report to our attention]