Abstract
M-VAP (Management and Valuation through Absolute Prospectivity) is a new offering from SRK Exploration to assist companies to value and manage exploration, monitor the prospectivity of a portfolio and forecast future performance. M-VAP replaces traditional relative prospectivity with a quantified ‘Absolute Prospectivity’ that estimates the probabilities of making a discovery of deposits of different magnitude within an area of interest. These probabilities can then be used within a decision tree model to assess if the estimated future value of potential discoveries warrants exploration activity.
Using gold exploration in the Eastern Goldfields as a case study, the presentation will explain how M-VAP utilises Bayesian statistics and machine learning to combine expert knowledge in the form of a Mineral Systems Model with mineral endowment, exploration & deposit data. Through this integration we can not only assess geological prospectivity but also weigh it against the exploration maturity and residual endowment. In this way mature terranes can be properly assessed alongside unexplored greenfield areas and exploration expenditure allocated optimally. Furthermore, M-VAP can be used to monitor exploration, allocate capital and forecast future performance.
