• Single spreadsheet containing all data and modelling inputs
• Production data and detailed cash costs for individual iron ore and manganese mines
• Production data and detailed cash costs aggregated by production unit (eg Vale Southern System)
• Ability to change all prices and exchange rates
• Ability to change ocean freight rates and destinations to generate CIF cost curves.
• Ability to choose between FOB and CIF cost curves.
• User selectable cost curve options to display detailed cost breakdown or total cash costs
• Draw cost curves showing mines or aggregated data by production unit
• Complete control over which mines are displayed
• Cost curves may be copied into reports or other publications
• Regular updates of cost data as it becomes available.

Dynamic Cost Curves give you complete control over all offsite cost inputs that drive the shape of the cost curve. You can also control the way the cost curve displays, and which mines are labelled on the cost curve. The complete dynamic cost curves model comes with data, charts and tables for iron ore and manganese. There are five cost curves for iron ore showing mine to port cost of saleable product lumps, fines and pellets (either FOB or CIF), ROM ore onsite costs, and mine to port ROM ore costs (FOB or CIF). For manganese there are two cost curves showing manganese in concentrate mine to port costs (FOB or CIF) and manganese ROM ore onsite costs.

This example shows the cost curve for iron ore saleable fines FOB port (note that data has been changed to obscure actual mines), with labels for all mines producing above 5.0 Mt product. This curve shows the main components of cash operating costs - mining, beneficiation, transport, port loading and royalties.

Alternatively, the cost curve can be displayed showing labor, fuel and power, other onsite costs and transport and port costs.

This is the CIF cost curve again, but with some of the freight rates changed. The shaded mines are the ones that have changed.

The next curve shows the iron ore mine to FOB port cost curve in $/t ROM ore, using the same assumptions as in the first cost curve.

This is the iron ore mine to FOB port cost curve ranked by major production units/companies.

And here is the same cost curve showing the effect of changes in some exchange rate and prices, with the ranking changes shaded in gray.

Dynamic Cost Curves are a great tool for presentations. Assume you want to show a couple of mines on the cost curve drawn on your own price and exchange rate assumptions. Simply plug in your own prices and exchange rate assumptions, use the names display switches to display only the names you want, and then copy the cost curve chart into Paintshop or Photoshop to add colours and copy the result into Powerpoint.

Registered minecost subscribers may download a free evaluation set of the iron ore dynamic cost curves model.