Modelling

Common pitfalls that undermine cost model accuracy — and the practical steps to build models your CFO can trust. Operating cost models are the financial backbone of every mining operation. They inform budgets, drive investment decisions, and underpin feasibility studies. Yet in our experience reviewing and building OPEX models across PGM, iron ore, copper, coal, and manganese operations, we consistently encounter the same five mistakes that erode model credibility and lead to