Extraordinary demand has seen Australia’s largest mining and resources conference and expo significantly expand its floor plan in 2022.
The International Mining and Resources Conference (IMARC) will host more than 7500 attendees from over 100 countries at Sydney’s International Convention Centre from 2–4 November.
The conference, the largest of its kind in Australia, will provide the opportunity for domestic and international industry leaders to engage, learn, network and, most importantly, do business, while addressing the energy transition, rising costs, skills shortages, social performance, and diversity within the resources sector.
IMARC is the most significant in-person gathering of Australian and international mining and resources representatives in almost three years and will be held under the one roof across a massive 17,000 square metres.
IMARC managing director Anita Richards said the response to this year’s event has been overwhelming.
“We’re welcoming a record number of delegates this year, representing 800 mining companies, and with IMARC exhibitors increasing by 85 per cent since 2019, we’ve had to expand the expo floor by 40 per cent,” she said.
“The program will see over 450 speakers across six concurrent conferences covering global opportunities, industry collaboration, the energy transition, investment, innovation and more.”
A major networking and investment opportunity, IMARC is also the only event of its kind that uses enhanced and accurate networking technology to match delegates, allowing them to pinpoint new business and investment opportunities and start crucial conversations.
“This is not just a conference and exhibition; real deals are closed on the IMARC floor,” Richards said.
The mining industry is facing more challenges than ever before, including supply-chain volatility, the rising cost of business, environmental, social and governance (ESG) pressures, navigating the energy transition, and growing social and investor expectations.
IMARC is a key forum that addresses these issues by gathering a wide cross-section of the mining value chain to share lessons and insights, and help each other navigate pathways to a sustainable and prosperous future, whether in exploration and investment, operational transformation, workforce growth or community engagement.
For example, IMARC’s Balance for Better, Next Gen programs and First Nations partnership initiatives aim to set the tone for a more diverse future, encouraging attendance from Indigenous delegates, providing opportunities for young people, and championing equality, with women in leadership positions, community roles and engineering a key focus.
The Next Gen program is for students, graduates, and future leaders. It provides an opportunity for the industry’s future workforce to network, learn and be inspired by leaders in mining, resources, and technology at Australia’s largest industry event.
Developed in partnership with the Victorian Government, the program is committed to promoting STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) across the mining and resources industry.
Those in attendance at IMARC Next Gen can expect to build relationships, learn about a diverse range of careers, gain insights from current leaders, meet over 470 companies representing all aspects of the mining value chain, and connect with mining C-suite executives, human resources managers, and key advocates for the future workforce.
Global mining leaders look to IMARC as a crucial opportunity to build on the progress the sector is making towards sustainability, diversification and addressing the skills shortage facing the industry.
Fortescue chief financial officer Ian Wells will be speaking at IMARC. He believes talent needs to be a key focus across mining and resources.
“The mining sector is a great place to work with many opportunities, and while our sector is committed to training and developing Australians to be part of the workforce of the future, current acute skills shortages means we must look beyond our borders for additional workers,” Wells said.
“As an industry, we must and can do more to build on our commitment to developing a diverse workforce that is reflective of society and to foster a workplace culture that truly embraces diversity and inclusiveness.
“We believe that diversity has been key to our success and we remain strongly committed to increasing female and Aboriginal employment across the business.”
While looking internationally, Fortescue has also invested heavily in local talent, including through the Billion Opportunities program which has invested more than $4 billion into Aboriginal businesses since 2011.
IMARC director of conference content and strategy Sherene Asnasyous said the forum would provide a platform for conversations about the next steps towards an essential increase in recruitment and retention across the industry.
“IMARC will allow global leaders and emerging game-changers from the entire mining value chain the unique opportunity to come together under one roof and tackle not only the skills shortage but other urgent challenges facing the industry right now,” Asnasyous said.
“This is including the energy transition, rising costs, social performance, and diversity within the resources sector.”
More than 250,000 people are employed across the Australian mining value chain, making it one of the largest employment industries in the country.
Another key theme this year is innovation and technology, with local start-ups and leading global brands showcasing their latest products and services across automation, communication, safety and sustainability to create better, faster, safer, and more profitable operations.
“This industry has seen so much change since the last in-person IMARC event, but this November global delegates will finally have the opportunity to connect face-to-face in Sydney, build relationships, forge partnerships and do business,” Richards said.
AspenTech vice president and general manager of metals and mining Jeannette McGill said it’s vital the sector comes together to discuss challenges – especially where technology is concerned.
“Industry collaboration enables critical debate to build consensus amongst movers and shakers of the industry. Hence, it is necessary to keep the conversation going and agree to disagree before the industry, as a whole, levels up,” McGill said.
Other themes at this year’s conference include:
accelerating the energy transition
embracing digital technology and mining innovation
investing in exploration and project developments
minimising disruptions and building resilience
progressing ESG and strengthening social value
redesigning the mining workforce and culture.
The theme of accelerating the energy transition will be especially important as the global mining and resources industry continues to make a serious and collaborative effort in responding to the threat of climate change.
Miners joining this conference will benefit from hearing what their peers are doing in terms of climate resilience and decarbonisation.
An array of presentations from climate change experts, as well as discussions from renewable and energy providers and technology showcases, will provide insights as to what options and capabilities are available to meet decarbonisation requirements.
The brand-new three-day conference on accelerating the energy transition will focus on:
powering mines with renewable energy sources
low-carbon, low-energy technologies
electrification
climate resilience and decarbonisation strategies
critical and future facing minerals
the role of fossil fuels in the energy transition
hydrogen production and export.
Attendees will hear from METS Ignited national cluster development manager Andrew Scott and Pilbara Minerals chief operating officer Dale Henderson, among others.
Asnasyous added that with such a diverse cross-section of the mining and resources industry attending, the event is a unique opportunity for collaboration to address evolving challenges.
“IMARC will shine a spotlight on the role the METS (mining equipment, technology and services) sector is taking in driving the global energy transition, how it is bringing innovation to the exploration and development of new future-facing resources, and how it is helping balance the needs of the developed and the developing world, as well as local communities and environments, in the resource transition.
At its core, IMARC creates a global conversation and is all about the business of mining and resources.
It provides extensive opportunities for collaboration, knowledge-sharing and cross-sector engagement to help drive a smarter, more productive industry of the future.”
This feature appeared in the October issue of Australian Mining.