Often overlooked by prospectors in the field, or those surfing for opportunities on the Internet as they are considered by some to be a 'big company' only game, the 'ordinary' minerals used every day are anything but boring. Advertise on www.westernminer.com that you have a prospect, listed under the magic heading of "Gold" that is valued at $40 per ton (even without documentation), and your e-mail box will be filled with junk. List an industrial mineral as nepheline syenite, even though some of the end uses can bring $400 per ton, and the reader passes by with a, "huh."
Investors bright enough to realize that any sort of mining venture requires a lot of homework have also been hampered by the understanding that many of the breakthrough uses of industrial minerals are hidden behind a wall of proprietary, insider, information. For example, a number of years ago you could buy over the pre-web Internet a market study on nepheline syenite, for a mere, $4,500. This report is no longer available at any price.
This report called nepheline the Swiss Army knife of industrial minerals, but pointed out also gathering free marking data on the Internet to make sound decisions, is difficult. Finding the latest research on the university level of the material being introduced to the steel making process is equally frustrating. And it is almost impossible to get a straight answer, being the stakes, and security are so high, from any of the major contracted corporations working on the Yuka Mountain or Hanford projects. The big question - is it true that encasing atomic waste in a nepheline container for transport is the same as having a self-sealing tire?- happens to be proprietary knowledge, with a twist. These mega corporations are the only ones authorized, or equipped, to experiment with spent fuel.
Fortunately most industrial minerals, even 'cat litter,' have a multitude of markets. These applications truly prove that "If it isn't grown, it is mined." High-grade silica, ground down to a very fine powder can bring up to $600 per ton, or the waste rubble can be sold a landscaping material. Nepheline, as 3M has been doing for years with their Arkansas deposit, makes a wonderful tab roofing material.
What this publication hopes to accomplish is to bring documented information -including a virtual video first look at a prospect- of industrial minerals to investment groups who realize that this form of mining really isn't about driving an adit, following a vein that pinches and turns. Think of them instead as big gravel pits in need of a management system that understands outsourcing professional opinions, and turnkey contractors. That, and knowing how to market a product.
First step along this 'Information Highway' is to take a look at the possibilities from the 'top down,' perspective, rather than the ground up. Sort of a reverse on the old Kaiser Industries slogan of, "Find a need, then fill it!" in that industrials require a business plan that goes, "Find a material, then look for a need to fill with your product."
It is our intent to provide a total disclosure method of distributing information on available industrial minerals opportunities via the World Wide Web, and CD disk catalogs that are available on a subscription basis. It is our Information Age belief that the www really stands for win-win-win, and for this reason we are also soliciting property listing that have a potential of being of interest to our customers - our readers.
Is spending an evening propped up in bed prospecting a mineral deposit shown upon a laptop, work? Yes. Opportunity? Absolutely. And best of all you would benefit from the other oft quoted truism about the mining industry, "The only true form of wealth comes from the earth."
Before you invest in mining here are some Books on Mining Investing that we recommend for your own due diligence.
