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Factor demands and output supply by the extractive firm : theory and estimationLasserre, Pierre January 1981 (has links)
This dissertation deals with theoretical and empirical aspects of factor demand and output supply decisions of firms. In the theoretical part of the thesis, some major existing theories of investment are discussed and their formulation is extended to the case of firms which extract an exhaustible resource. Those theories are then incorporated into a model which exploits complementarities between some of them and can reflect some well-known hypotheses, such as the putty-clay hypothesis, as special cases. This model relies on a general notion of irreversibility: a decision is defined as irreversible if it introduces a new constraint to a firm. This constraint may be a non negativity constraint, but may also mean the appearance
of costs of adjustments. Such an approach implies a distinction between ex ante phases and ex post phases in the life of firms, those phases being separated by the irreversible decisions.
Two empirical applications are presented. The first one corresponds
to the ex ante phase of the theoretical model, and deals with the capacity selection decision of some North-American open-pit metal mines. According to the evidence, this decision takes account of economic parameters, such as expected prices, as well as geological and technological
parameters. The second empirical application correspond to the ex post phase of the theoretical model, and deals with the short-run production decisions of some mines. Both empirical studies provide support
for the putty-clay hypothesis. / Arts, Faculty of / Vancouver School of Economics / Graduate
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Risk analysis assessment of the influence of geological factors on exploration and mining investment alternatives : development of a microcomputer simulation modelMallinson, Clyde A January 1987 (has links)
A microcomputer risk analysis model is developed and used in an exploration - delineation simulation to analyse in particular the effects of geological factors on exploration mining investment alternatives. Analysis of results indicate that geological parameters can have profound effects on such investment alternatives and that the role of the geologist in determining and evaluating the significance of the various geological factors is critical. Simulation examples highlight some of the key geological parameters and show how changes in these parameters influence both the expected mean results and the standard deviations of such means. The risk analysis model provides an ideal means of conveying the importance of the different geoiogical factors on exploration - delineation - mining investment alternatives and may be used as a geological education aid
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Determining the attitudes/perceptions of retrenched Lesotho migrant labourers from the RSA mining industries regarding education using their career life historiesMorojele, Relebohile Nthati 04 1900 (has links)
Thesis (MPhil)--Stellenbosch University, 2004. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The level of unemployment in Lesotho has reached an alarming rate and this situation
is compounded by massive mine retrenchments (Central Bank of Lesotho, 2001: 22).
Given this background, it is imperative to gain a deeper understanding of the career
life histories of retrenched Basotho migrant labourers in order to explain their
perceptions/attitudes regarding education. In-depth individual interviews with 26
retrenched mineworkers were conducted for collecting data and a grounded theory
approach was followed in analysing the data.
The life histories of the men were critically investigated, from the time before they
were employed in the mines, to the stage when they were working in the mining
industries. The enquiry continued to a stage when they were retrenched from the
mines. Their lives after retrenchment were looked at to establish whether they had
acquired skills whilst they were employed in the mines. The objective was to determine
whether the skills acquired were useful to them after retrenchment and if they could
secure them employment in other sectors of the economy besides the mines. The
study revealed that most of the migrant labourers had not acquired other skills besides
those that were offered in the mines. As a result, all of the men were unemployed
becausethey lacked skills that were relevant to the economy of Lesotho.
Retrenched migrant labourers reported that education was important, especially for
their children. For them, they indicated that they could pursue education if they would
be employed in the mines again of it is offered where they would be employed, on the
job training. The question is whether these men will secure employment in other
sectors in Lesotho given that they lack relevant skills. It is advisable, therefore, for the
government of Lesotho to facilitate career guidance in the country to encourage these
men to acquire marketable skills and to promote employment creation. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die werkloosheidsyfer in Lesotho het 'n ontstellende vlak bereik en hierdie situasie
word vererger deur massiewe afdankings by die myne (Central Bank of Lesotho, 2001:
22). Dit is dus noodsaaklik, gegee hierdie agtergrond dat 'n beter begrip van die
beroepsgeskiedenisse van afgedankte Basotho trekarbeiders omskryf word om hulle
persepsies/houdings jeens opvoeding vas te stel. Daar is individuele in-diepte
onderhoude gevoer met 26 afgedankte mynwerkers om data in te samel en 'n
gegronde teorie aanslag is gevolg in die analise van die data.
Die lewensgeskiedenisse van die mans is krities ondersoek, vanaf die tydperk wat hulle
in diens geneem is in die myne tot hulle indiensneming in die mynindustrieë. Die
ondersoek sluit ook die afdankings periode in. Hulle lewens na afdanking is ook
ondersoek om vas te stelof hulle vaardighede tydens hulle diens in die myne
aangeleer het. Die doelstelling hiermee was om vas te stelof die aangeleerde
vaardighede indiensname in ander sektore kon verseker na hulle afgedank is. Die
studie toon dat die meeste trekarbeiders nie enige ander vaardighede aangeleer het as
wat hulle in die myne gebruik het nie. Dit het daartoe gelei dat hulle nie geskik is vir
werk in ander sektore aangesien hulle nie oor relevante vaardighede beskik nie.
Afgedankte trekarbeiders het aangedui dat opvoeding belangrik is, veral vir hulle
kinders. Hulle het wel aangedui dat hulle verdere opleiding sou wou ontvang indien
hulle weer in diens geneem word of as deel van in-diens opleiding. Die kwessie is egter
of hierdie mans in ander sektore in diens geneem sal word aangesien hulle nie oor die
nodige vaardighede beskik nie. Dit word dus aanbeveel dat die Lesotho regering
beroepsleiding te fasiliteer om hierdie mans aan te moedig om bemarkbare
vaardighede te kry as ook om werkverskaffing aan te moedig.
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Configural cue processing of project finance risks in the lending decision : an analysis of loan officers decision processes in mining project financeChimuti, Shingirai 03 1900 (has links)
Thesis (MDF)--University of Stellenbosch, 2011. / The continent of Africa is often recognised more for its problems and conflicts than for its
successes. Blessed with an abundance of natural resources, the continent has also suffered from
the ‘resource curse’ with many of its troubles directly linked to resource conflicts. Project-finance
provides a unique opportunity for unlocking the continent’s resources by structuring arrangements
which can allay investor concerns. This report contributes to the discourse on Africa’s development
by unpacking some of the key issues which will enable and fast-track future investment on the
continent.
The primary purpose of this study was to investigate how subjective risk analysis and decision
making affect risk-based lending. Tied to this was the examination of five risk categories and how
these influence the decisions of project-finance loan officers. The particular focus of this study was
in the mining sector.
This study reviewed a comprehensive body of the literature which found that corruption and
political risk were of great influence on lenders’ perception of risk. This study also reviewed the
cognitive psychology literature in order to understand how decision makers process information
cues. A quantitative method was then employed in order to understand how project-finance lenders
respond to project-finance risk information cues. The results of the study were that, when
considering mining projects in Africa, political and market risk have significant influence on the
decisions of lenders. This finding confirms that there remain key issues which must be recognised
and addressed if the continent is to generate and sustain long-term wealth.
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The impact of mining on infrastructure development and poverty reduction in mining communitiesXongo, Nosipho January 2013 (has links)
There is a growing concern from government, communities, civil society and mining companies on the sustained development of the impact of mining on communities and the benefits of mineral development. Communities are more vocal in expressing their expectations for benefits and on the other hand mines are concerned about profits and maintaining a social licence to operate. This study critically evaluates the impact mining has on socio-economic development in mining communities. The focus area of the study is the West Rand District Municipality in Gauteng Province, South Africa. The ‘impact’ refers to the mine’s contribution to infrastructure development and poverty reduction projects in areas where the mine is operating and sourcing labour from. Forecasts for better performance in the future will be assessed. Issues such as community consultation, identification of projects, development forums, the Integrated Development Plan (IDP) and partnerships are addressed. The literature was reviewed from existing national and international research on the topic. The study starts from two assumptions. The first is that minerals are potentially a great resource of wealth for poor countries. The second assumption is that minerals have the potential to benefit the local population through the creation of indirect employment, skills transfer, enhancing the capacity of health and education services, improved infrastructure and small and medium business opportunities. Poverty levels are viewed on a national and international scale. The study reveals problems, with existing approaches, on mine community development. It concludes that the impact of mining on infrastructure development and poverty reduction projects can be huge, but only if a variety of demanding preconditions are met. The study concludes that the reality of mineral led development in mine communities has not lived up to a roaring promise.
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Financial sector development and sectoral output growth evidence from South AfricaTongo, Yanga January 2012 (has links)
The goal of the study is to examine the relationship between financial sector development and output growth in the agricultural, mining and manufacturing sectors in South Africa. The analysis is based on the hypothesis that financial development is essential for promoting production growth in an economy. To test the hypothesis, in the South African context, the vector autoregressive model (VAR) framework and Granger causality test are applied to a quarterly data set starting from 1970 quarter one to 2009 quarter four. The results suggest that financial intermediary development (bank based measure) and stock market development (market based measure) have a positive impact on output growth in the agriculture, mining and manufacturing sectors in South Africa. There is evidence of a one way causal relationship between financial sector development and sectoral output growth. Particularly, there is evidence that financial intermediary development and stock market development causes output growth in the agriculture, mining and manufacturing sectors in South Africa. However, there is no evidence showing causality running from sectoral output growth to financial sector development. The results provide evidence supporting the theory which states that financial development is essential to promote output growth in a country i.e. in our case South Africa. Thus an efficient financial system which promotes efficient channeling of resources towards the agricultural, mining and manufacturing sectors should be built.
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An analysis of the long run comovements between financial system development and mining production in South AfricaAjagbe, Stephen Mayowa January 2011 (has links)
This study examines the nature of the relationship which exists between mining sector production and development of the financial systems in South Africa. This is particularly important in that the mining sector is considered to be one of the major contributors to the country’s overall economic growth. South Africa is also considered to have a very well developed financial system, to the point where the dominance of one over the other is difficult to identify. Therefore offering insight into the nature of this relationship will assist policy makers in identifying the most effective policies in order to ensure that the developments within the financial systems impact appropriately on the mining sector, and ultimately on the economy. In addition to using the conventional proxies of financial system development, this study utilises the principal component analysis (PCA) to construct an index for the entire financial system. The multivariate cointegration approach as proposed by Johansen (1988) and Johansen and Juselius (1990) was then used to estimate the relationship between the development of the financial systems and the mining sector production for the period 1988-2008. The study reveals mixed results for different measures of financial system development. Those involving the banking system show that a negative relationship exists between total mining production and total credit extended to the private sector, while liquid liabilities has a positive relationship. Similarly, with the stock market system, mixed results are also obtained which reveal a negative relationship between total mining production and stock market capitalisation, while a positive relationship is found with secondary market turnover. Of all the financial system variables, only that of stock market capitalisation was found to be significant. The result with the financial development index reveals that a significant negative relationship exists between financial system development and total mining sector production. Results on the other variables controlled in the estimation show that positive and significant relationships exist between total mining production and both nominal exchange rate and political stability respectively. Increased mining production therefore takes place in periods of appreciating exchange rates, and similarly in the post-apartheid era. On the other hand, negative relationships were found for both trade openness and inflation control variables. The impulse response and variance decomposition analyses showed that total mining production explains the largest amount of shocks within itself. Overall, the study reveals that the mining sector might not have benefited much from the development in the South African financial system.
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Impact of mining on agriculture and socio-economic aspects in the rural communities of Greater Tubatse Local MunicipalityTsebe, Mapuru Rachel 07 1900 (has links)
The majority of people in the mining areas in Limpopo, South Africa, depend on agriculture
to sustain their livelihoods; however, the mines have also become important because they
create better employment opportunities. The purpose of the study was to analyse the impact
of mining on agriculture and socio-economic aspects in the rural communities of the Greater
Tubatse Local Municipality. The objectives were to profile the socio-demographic
characteristics of the community members surrounding a chrome mine; to determine the
impact of mining activities on agricultural production (crop and livestock production); to
determine factors influencing farmers’ perceived impact of mining activities on agricultural
production; and to ascertain the socio-economic (natural capital, financial capital, social
capital, human capital, physical capital) impact of mining activities on the local communities.
A quantitative research approach was used to conduct the study using a survey design. Six
villages surrounding a chrome mine in the Greater Tubatse Local Municipality in Limpopo
participated in the study. Stratified and random sampling approaches were used to select
participants from each village to constitute a sample of 347. A total of 347 survey
questionnaires were administered through face-to-face interviews but only 309 were correctly and fully completed. SPSS version 24 was used to analyse the data. The data were analysed
using descriptive statistics, the ordered logistic regression model, Wilcoxon signed ranks test
and binomial test. The majority (50.8%) of the respondents were male. Sepedi was the most
spoken language (97.7%). Most (63.3%) of the respondents were in the age range of 18-30,
and 76.4% were single in terms of marital status. A large proportion of the respondents
(70.6%) could read and write because they had secondary education. Land ownership
findings show that more than half (58.1%) of the respondents had farm plot sizes between
4.6 and 10.5 ha. Average farm plot size was 4.1 ha, and only a few (1.3%) of the plots were
above 9 ha. The average family size was about 7 people (actual 6.7). A large proportion
(77.7%) of the respondents were dependent on government social grants (pensioners,
disability and orphans) as the main source of income. Regarding the impact of mines on
agriculture, the study found that in general, the mines did not have a negative impact on the
production of livestock and crops, except for donkeys and groundnuts, which were negatively affected. In addition, the findings also show that a large proportion (92.6%) of the
respondents lost their agricultural land (mainly grazing land) because of increased mining
activities, although the loss of land did not affect production. With regard to the socioeconomic
impact of mining activities on the surrounding communities, the study found that
the mines had a negative impact on natural capital, physical capital, financial capital and
social capital. However, the impact on human capital was positive. It is recommended that
mining companies in the study area provide the necessary support to improve the socioeconomic
status of the rural communities surrounding the mines in Greater Tubatse Local
Municipality. / Agriculture, Animal Health and Human Ecology / M. Sc. (Agriculture)
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