| Current Metals Sector Contribution |
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| The metals sector contributes significantly to British Columbia's economy. Total sales in 2000 were C$1.572 billion from 12 mining operations which employed 3,350 people. |
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| Historical Trends from 1980 to 2000 |
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| The long term trends in the metals sector, over the past two decades are illustrated in the following graphs. During this period, sales have increased in terms of current dollars and show a gentle decline in real or constant dollars. (Figure 1 includes constant dollars using a Canadian CPI deflator). |
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Figure 1. |
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| The modest annual sales growth in current dollars is a direct result of the production volumes and prices received from several different metal commodities produced. Over the past two decades the six metal commodities (copper, gold, zinc, molybdenum, silver and lead) shown in Figure 2 have accounted for 99% of the value of metals sold in British Columbia (aluminum sales are not included since this metal is refined but not mined in the province). The near-total market-share based on these six key metals is explained by the fact that most of the metal mines in British Columbia are present in one of three deposit settings: porphyries, veins and massive sulphides. One implication is that new discoveries in additional deposit types (which to some extent have been identified in mineral potential studies by the Ministry of Energy and Mines) could greatly diversify the future mining economy in the province. The metal commodities of copper, gold and zinc alone, account for 80% of the value of metals sold. |
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Figure 2. |
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| The long term interplay between the production and price of metals is plotted for copper, gold and zinc in the next three graphs. Since these three metal commodities make up the major share of the metals economy, their market prices and production volumes largely determine the health of this sector in British Columbia. Figures 3, 4 and 5 highlight production and (current dollar) price trends. As illustrated by these charts, prices of these internationally-traded commodities are reasonably volatile compared with their long term production trends. The long term downward trend in copper production and price is offset by upward trends in zinc production and zinc price. The downward trend in gold price has largely been offset by the increasing production of gold in the province. |
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| Figure 3. |
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Figure 4. |
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| Figure 5. |
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Another long term trend worth noting is the decline in employment in the metals sector. However with over 3,000 people employed in this sector and an additional 6,000 indirect and induced employees, the metals industry remains an important employer. Figure 6 highlights the productivity gains (sales per employee) in metal mining and the number of people employed over the past two decades. The ultimate benefit from these productivity gains over decreasing employment is necessary for British Columbia metal production to remain competitive. Much of the productivity gain reflects both technology transfers and increasingly efficient methods for producing ore. An even better outcome in future would be to realize much stronger growth in metal sales through additional operations, accompanied by ongoing increases in productivity, at a level which also supports growth in employment. |
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| Figure 6. |
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Last updated May 09, 2007
