IMARC 2026 spotlight on mining’s evolving tactics

‘How do we deliver growth reliably when supply is more constrained, costs are higher and volatility is embedded?’

Winning strategies of some of the world’s best companies will be explored in Sydney in October as the annual International Mining and Resources Conference (IMARC) puts mining industry growth, shock resistance and long-term investment returns under a spotlight.

The centrepiece of Australia’s International Mining Week, IMARC is bringing a long and diverse list of exceptional leaders to ICC Sydney from October 27-29 to interrogate key questions about the industry’s future.

“How do we deliver growth reliably when supply is more constrained, costs are higher and volatility is embedded?”

EY head of global mining and metals Paul Mitchell says that’s a core question being put to leaders at all levels of an industry in an unprecedented growth phase.

“Miners need to focus on delivering growth with greater discipline and execution certainty in a volatile, higher-cost and capital-constrained environment,” he says.

IMARC 2026 is on track to draw a record number of attendees from over 120 countries to hear more than 500 speakers from across the industry value chain, and government, talk about operational excellence, technology and innovation, project development and delivery, investment and global opportunities.

Government representatives from more than 50 nations will join their counterparts from Australia’s federal and all state and territory administrations in Sydney.

BHP vice president innovation Marley Palin, Fortescue director of integrated operations Katie Charuga, Agnico Eagle Australian operations VP Ion Hann, Alcoa Australia president Elsabe Muller, Evolution Mining CEO Lawrie Conway, Endura Mining executive chair Jake Klein, Glencore project governance manager Tony Egan, Hancock Iron Ore head of digital innovation Chad Burrows, Lynas Rare Earths strategy VP Daniel Havas, Whitehaven Coal group system, data and AI HSE manager Misha Fazen and Perenti CEO Vanessa Torres are just some of the leading industry names on this year’s program.

They will be joined at IMARC 2026 by the likes of Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative chair Maria van der Hoeven, who will have been on the European agency’s board for a year; director of the critical minerals security program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, Gracelin Baskaran; World Gold Council chief strategy officer Terry Heymann; France’s critical minerals envoy, Benjamin Gallezot; and US mining investment guru Rick Rule.

IMARC’s powerful international speaker line-up also features Securing America’s Future Energy (SAFE) executive director Abigail Hunter, the CEO of major international commodity trader Traxys, Mark Kristoff, pioneering royalty company Franco-Nevada’s managing director in Australia, Kevin McElligott, and the Hong Kong-based CEO and co-founder of EMR Capital, Jason Chang.

Agnico Eagle’s Hann said this month the standout global gold major had a “pretty simple philosophy and a pretty simple business”.

“Our proven strategy has stood the test of time,” he says.

“We operate in first-world jurisdictions where the rule of law and safety of tenure are respected.

“The second part of our strategy is that you’ve got to have the rocks. We want rocks that hold multiple mines for multiple decades. We embed ourselves in these regional areas. We become part of the community and it’s where we get our strategic advantage from.”

Agnico Eagle has one of the industry’s best growth pipelines centred on core operating hubs in Canada and Finland. But Hann says Australia remains a tier-one global jurisdiction with outstanding potential to contribute heavily to future high-margin gold output expansion through Fosterville and the surrounding Bendigo goldfield in Victoria and potentially Pine Creek in the Northern Territory, too.

“We’ve got the only modern processing plant of any size in the Central Victorian goldfield at Fosterville,” Hann says.

“We genuinely believe that there’s as much gold yet to be discovered as there has been mined in Bendigo today. And we think we’re in a really good position to maximise the value out of all of those orebodies that are yet to be found.

“This is the [Agnico Eagle] strategy in action. There will be growth. In the meantime, Fosterville continues to churn out significant cash flow.”

Evolution’s Conway leads another market trailblazer. Timely portfolio upgrades, investment in gold assets and development of a circa-20% copper income stream through the Northparkes and Ernest Henry assets in New South Wales and Queensland, respectively, have helped the A$27 billion company deliver sector-leading investment and shareholder returns over its 17-year corporate life.

“If you’re a gold producer in these times the safest bet is to have a high-margin business,” Conway says.

“Canaccord Genuity has looked at the industry from 2015 to now, so the last 12 years, and shown that the [average] margin has been increasing.

“Our margin in each and every one of those 12 years has exceeded the industry average.

“It means we are generating more cash per ounce of gold that we produce than anyone else in the industry.

“In 2026, the year that we’ve just finished, we generated record cash flow of about $1.4 billion but at a margin of $2000 an ounce after we invested $1.1 billion into our business.

“We’ve increased our production threefold since we started acquiring assets over the last 10 years and we’ve averaged a rate of return of around 18% per annum.”

Just as strikingly, Conway says, Evolution’s gold-equivalent ore reserves have actually grown by 43% on a per-share basis over its 17-year existence on the back of, again, portfolio renewal and re-investment in the business. In that same period the company has paid out more than $2 billion in dividends on a “very good policy” based on returning 50% of free cash flows to shareholders.

Social standing is another vital ingredient in the success of Agnico Eagle and Evolution Mining and IMDEX, the mining world’s first $2 billion technology company in the public arena, is emblematic of significant cultural evolution in other parts of the industry value chain.

The Western Australian-based company announced this month it was introducing 24-week paid parental leave for its 830 or so employees, double the previous level, including the 65% of its workforce in more than 40 countries outside Australia.

Kiah Grafton, IMDEX’s chief people, communications & sustainability officer, says in a world of high mining and technology sector salaries, and shifting work-life patterns, the importance of flexible and supportive workplace practices to help effectively manage professional and personal commitments cannot be underestimated.

“We do view it as an investment in our people and the future of the workforce,” Grafton says.

“The best organisations continually evolve their employee value proposition rather than waiting until they have an actual talent crisis or challenge.

“Leadership is about making deliberate choices to support long-term business success and supporting our employees through major life events isn’t just the right thing to do it also helps build a stronger, more engaged, more sustainable workforce.

“If we really want to attract exceptional people, which we do, and retain them, we need employment practices that reflect modern workforce expectations. And we see that modern workforce expectations continue to be around culture, flexibility and employee benefits.

“Parental leave was just area we felt we needed to create more of that inclusive, supportive workplace and position Imdex for future growth.”

IMDEX will be among more than 500 of the world’s top mining equipment, technology and services (METS) companies presenting cutting-edge products and services on IMARC’s 20,000sq.m expo floor.

The event has helped many mine and project operators connect with METS leaders to accelerate vital productivity and safety advances.

IMARC’s Mining Guest Pass gives eligible site operators, leaders and teams free conference and exhibition access. The event’s Mining Operators & Capability Program, MOC courses and Hosted Buyer Program provide other opportunities for these visitors to enhance their IMARC experience.

Readers can find out more here.