Global Challenges for Innovation in Mining Industries

Testimonials

Eduardo Bitran Colodro,

Professor, Engineering School
University Adolfo Ibañez
Santiago de Chile

This book is a very valuable contribution to understanding how the specific innovation challenges of the mining sector in our countries could contribute to the development of a sophisticated technological suppliers industry linked to global value chain and how intellectual property protection facilitate the global expansion of these businesses.

Pamela Chavez-Crooker,

Biotech researcher and Entrepreneur
Founder of Aguamarina and Domolif

This book show us the big picture of Innovation in Mining industry through intelectual property data analysis. The studies presented allow us to understand how IP Plays an important role on Innovation success in developed countries. Cases as Australia and Chile are inspiring to read.

Simona Iammarino,

London School of Economics and Political Science

Mining, the most ancient of industries, faces ever-higher technological hurdles in providing the raw materials needed for the transition to Industry 4.0, the infrastructure of global supply chains and communications, and the building of a new sustainable economy. This book is a timely contribution, commendable for placing innovation in mining industries centre-stage in helping us understand the challenges and opportunities of the 21st century.

Carlos Gonzalo Rivas Gómez

Chief of the Competitiveness, Technology, and Innovation Division
Inter-American Development Bank (IDB)

Mining provides us with commodities that are essential to our daily lives. However, mining is also facing a number of complex challenges. Firstly, deposits are harder to find and exploit and are less profitable. Mining also needs to be more environmentally sustainable and socially inclusive. Without innovation, these challenges cannot be overcome and this book offers valuable insight into how innovation is transforming not only mining, but other industries besides.

Andres Sanabria

Coordinator of the OECD Mining Regions and Cities Initiative
OECD

Innovation in mining is not only relevant to ensure a sustainable supply of raw materials for our society but is also a cornerstone to meet global climate goals and unlock development opportunities for hosting communities. This book provides important policy takeaways to understand and promote innovation in mining and attain these multiple objectives.

Stephen McIntosh

Former Group Executive Growth & Innovation
Rio Tinto

Finally, a deeply impressive series of papers that delves into the innovation ecosystem supporting the global mining sector. This analysis, looking through the lens of intellectual property, makes it clear just how critical technological development has been to the success of the mining sector as we know it today. A rich source of deep insights for policy makers, industry players and academia alike.

Sergio Hernández

Executive Director
Chilean Mining Sector Industrial Suppliers' Association

Marvelous book. It describes, in sweeping terms, the great future awaiting mining countries as a result of the new applications of many of the world's minerals. The energy transition, in order to attain global decarbonization, needs more minerals —including copper, nickel, cobalt, lithium and others— which are mostly found in Latin-American and African countries. New innovation-centered investments in this sector, usually driven by supplier companies, are both key and highly likely.

Tom Butler

Former President and CEO
International Council on Mining and Metals

In the mining sector, successful innovation is increasingly key to efficient production, to mining safely and responsibly, and to fostering skills and knowledge with local suppliers in order to maintain social license to operate and help develop host economies. This book uses patents as a proxy for innovation to offer a comprehensive examination of the challenges, opportunities, and lessons learned in various countries, as well as at the global level. As such, it will be essential reading for policymakers as well as company decision-makers in the sector.

Francisco Orrego B.

Lawyer, Catholic University of Chile
Former Viceminister of Mining, Republic of Chile
Former Director of Empresa Nacional de Minería (ENAMI)

This book is a robust contribution and ilustrates that turning mining into a driver for change, through research, innovation and development of new industries with the generation of value and knowledge, is a multidimensional challenge. In the Chilean case, the book highlights that public-private partnerships have proven to be the path to address the productive and technological challenges of mining.

Editors

• Giulia Valacchi is based in the Department for Economics and Data Analytics of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) as a research fellow.
• Alica Daly is an experienced IP professional, currently working as a Senior Policy Officer in the Division of Artificial Intelligence Policy of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).
• Julio Raffo is Head of the Innovation Economics Section at the Department for Economics and Data Analytics of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).
• David Humphreys is an Honorary Lecturer at the University of Dundee, Scotland, and former Chief Economist at Norilsk Nickel and Rio Tinto.

Table of Contents

1. Global Challenges for Innovation in the Mining Industries

   Authors

   • Alica Daly
   • David Humphreys
   • Julio Raffo
   • Giulia Valacchi

   Abstract

   People have been digging in the ground for useful minerals for thousands of years. Stone Age people dug for flints, Bronze Age people for copper. But the manner in which they have dug for minerals has changed out of all recognition. While early miners hacked small amounts of mineral from the ground with antler horns, some of today’s mines employ 300 tonne trucks driven and scheduled by computers. Innovation lies at the heart of the story of mining. In this chapter, we begin by describing the mining industry and its major economic characteristics. We then discuss the role of innovation in the industry and the environment in which it makes places, and summarize some of the major findings to emerge from the subsequent chapters in the book.

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2. Recent Trends of Innovation in the Mining Sector

   Authors

   • Alica Daly
   • Julio Raffo
   • Giulia Valacchi

   Abstract

   Traditionally, the mining sector has been considered a slow innovator compared to other industries, like the manufacturing or pharmaceutical industries. However, we observe a radical change in the innovation activity of the mining industry in the first half of the 2000s. During this period, mining innovation started to increase rapidly after periods of stagnation and downward trends. To conduct and in-depth investigation of the global trends and patterns behind this change in mining innovation, we formulated a general search strategy to identify patent activity in this sector. The strategy is repeatable over time and in multiple databases. It enabled us to produce a dataset of patents in mining and mining-related technologies. Using this newly-created database we identified at the basis of the change a switch away from refining technologies into exploration and environmental technologies probably explained by the took over of the so-called 4th Industrial Revolution. The types of actors active in the mining innovation also changed across time: there are now many more individuals, research centers and universities innovating in mining and relatively less companies. Finally, the country composition in the pool of mining innovation activity has radically changed with the appearance of China on the global scene starting from early 2000.

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3. Mining Foreign Direct Investments and Local Technological Spillovers

   Authors

   • Bruno Casella
   • Lorenzo Formenti

   Abstract

   The purpose of this chapter is to integrate the book main theme on innovation and IP in the mining industry by providing an FDI angle that puts at the center the role of mining multinational enterprises (MNEs), both as main actors of international production and in their linkages with host countries' government and social and economic context. The issue of FDI spillovers, both technological and of other nature, has a particularly critical development dimension in the mining industry where the bulk of investment take place in developing countries, often LDCs (least developed countries).

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4. Innovation in Mining Global Value Chains: Implications for Emerging Economies

   Authors

   • Michiko Iizuka
   • Carlo Pietrobelli
   • Fernando Vargas

   Abstract

   This chapter aims at broadening the scope of innovation in the mining sector, with a focus on emerging countries based on the experience of Latin American countries. The background idea is that today innovation can foster growth of many countries endowed with natural resource in new ways that were not considered in the past. However, innovation needs to be interpreted in a broad sense: the mining sector is characterized by large numbers of patents in many countries, that tend to be concentrated in few very large companies. But mining cannot become a true engine of growth for the whole economy unless linkages within the sector and beyond involving other sectors – following the logic of a value chain and systems of innovation– are strengthened and deepened. This requires processes of diffusion, adoption and adaptation of innovation and technology.

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5. The Role of Transport-Related Innovation in the Mining Sector

   Authors

   • Francesco Dionori
   • Maryam Zehtabchi

   Abstract

   This chapter at its core looks at transport innovation in the mining sector between 1990-2016. The focus is on the raw materials that require extensive transport resources for movement, are usually transported in bulk and do not have significant unitary value. Main drivers of innovation are reducing transport costs and increasing the efficiency. Others revolve around safety and environmental issues. The chapter uses patent data to explore innovations both within the mining area and transport outside in the form of haulage to destination. It investigates all relevant modes of transport for mining sector namely; road, rail, conveyers and maritime.

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6. Environmental Regulations in the Mining Sector and Their Effect on Technological Innovation

   Authors

   • Maxwell Andersen
   • Joëlle Noailly

   Abstract

   This chapter examines the relationship between the mining sector and environmental regulation, particularly whether more strict national environmental policies lead to increased environmental innovation in the mining sector, and whether higher stringency harms overall mining sector productivity.

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7. Global Trends of Innovation in the Mining Sector: the Role of Commodity Prices

   Authors

   • Alica Daly
   • David Humphreys
   • Julio D. Raffo
   • Giulia Valacchi

   Abstract

   Given the boom in demand, the decreasing returns of existing mining sites and the sustainability requirements, it is not surprising that mining related commodities have seen a remarkable increase in price over the past two decades. Equally predictable was the well-documented boom in mining production and exports that followed. What has happened to the rate of mining-related innovation during this period remains an understudied topic. In this chapter we study the effect of variation in commodity price on the innovation carried out within the mining industry. In particular, we look at whether the existence of cycles in commodity price, distinguishing between short- and long-term cycles – the so-called super-cycles – affects innovation levels.

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8. IP Use and Technology Transfer in the Brazilian Mining Sector

   Authors

   • Domenica Blundi
   • Marina Filgueiras Jorge
   • Sergio Medeiros Paulino de Carvalho
   • Ana Claudia Nonato da Silva Loureiro
   • Vitoria Orind
   • Gustavo Travassos Pereira da Silva
   • Felipe Veiga Lopes

   Abstract

   The chapter describes the Brazilian mining sector, focusing on its competitive dynamics, strategic challenges and technological needs, as well as institutional arrangements to promote innovation. The chapter aims to identify how mining firms and METS have been dealing with technology innovation in Brazil, by two mechanisms: technology protection and technology transfer. To achieve this goal, a research was made based on a sample of residents and non-residents companies. The study intended to identify the main areas of technological protection within Brazilian mining sector, which type of company is concerned with a technological protection agenda in Brazil, how companies have been appropriating new technologies and technological knowledge through import contracts, and the role of METS in this dynamic. The analysis ranges from 2000 to 2015 and data was provided by INPI Brazil Economic Affairs Advisory. In addition, the chapter also presents the case of Vale S.A., selected on the basis of its representativeness and importance for the mining sector, focusing on its strategies to mitigate challenges and technological needs.

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9. Innovation and IP Use in the Chilean Copper Mining Sector

   Authors

   • Claudio Bravo-Ortega
   • Juan José Price

   Abstract

   The importance of the copper mining sector in Chile is unquestioned and is reflected in many production, international trade and fiscal revenue indicators. The sector, however, faces major challenges, namely deeper mines, scarcity of (and consequently more expensive) key inputs such as water and energy, lower-grade ores, concern for neighboring communities and respect for the environment. Innovation appears to be key to tackling these issues. In this chapter we present some preliminary evidence about the way both mining firms and suppliers innovate and whether (and if yes how) they protect their innovations in Chile.

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10. The MINER Act of 2006: Innovating for Safety and Health in US Mining

    Authors

    • James Forman
    • Asrat Tesfayesus
    • Andrew A. Toole

    Abstract

    This chapter explores technological innovations in mineral mining health and safety using patent data. Starting with the WIPO set of mining patents discussed earlier in this volume, our analysis focuses on patents filed with the US Patent and Trademark Office. We begin by describing the broad trends in US mineral mining patents as well as the subgroup related to health and safety. Next we provide an overview of the development of US mining legislation culminating with the passage of the US MINER Act of 2006. Interestingly, the MINER Act of 2006 established a competitive grant program to stimulate health and safety related innovations. The remainder of the chapter describes this program and the patented technological innovations associated with federally-supported research through the program. The final section performs descriptive regression analyses to relate the innovations stimulated by the program to health and safety outcomes in mineral mining.

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11. Innovation in the Canadian Mining Sector

    Authors

    • Mazahir Bhagat
    • Elias Collette
    • Baharak Courtney Doagoo
    • Amira Khadr
    • Sean Martineau
    • Marc Neville

    Abstract

    Canada is one of the largest mining nations in the world, ranking in the top five countries in the global production of 13 major minerals. The Canadian mining sector contributed $56 billion to Canada’s Gross Domestic Product (approximately 4%) and accounted for 19% of the value of Canadian goods exports in 2015. Despite the economic strength of the sector, R&D, innovation, and commercialization remain challenges for the Canadian mining sector. With increasing environmental standards and regulations, companies operating in this sector are continually searching for technological solutions to advance sustainable mining. Patent data is an excellent starting point for understanding these innovative efforts as the information contained in patents reveals the specific technical knowledge embedded in the invention. This detailed information allows us to see who is patenting and what they are patenting, allowing for the identification of collaboration opportunities while avoiding costly duplicative research. The chapter provides a lens into the patenting effort in the Canadian mining sector, including trends, landscape maps and collaboration and is the result of a collaborative effort between the Center for International Governance Innovation (CIGI) and the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO).

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12. Recent Trends of Innovation and IP Use in the Mining Sector in Australia

    Authors

    • Rohan Amburle
    • Catriona Bruce
    • Emma Francis
    • Alma Lacken
    • Greg Maloney
    • Deanna Trainham

    Abstract

    Australia is an attractive investment destination in the global mineral resources sector. With the world's largest identified resources of nine major mineral commodities, Australia's robust mining industry is a world leader. Australia is in the top five world locations as a producer of twenty important commodities, including gold, bauxite, iron ore, rare earths, mineral sands, zinc, lead and coal. We analysed patenting activity in the light of company participation in Australia’s R&D Tax Incentive. Patenting activity and R&D Tax Incentive expenditure broadly followed similar trends over time, peaking in the years around 2010 and declining thereafter. Research and development expenditure under the R&D Tax Incentive in the mining sector has grown six-fold from 2000 01, peaking in 2008 09 with an expenditure of $3.74 billion, with large firms having an expenditure six times that of small and medium enterprises (SMEs). This was followed by a 67 percent decline to 2015 16, which represented a ten-year low for large firms.

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