Innovation and Drivers of Productivity: A Global Analysis of Selected Critical Minerals

Abstract

Innovation and technology are important tools for delivering efficiency and productivity improvement in the minerals sector. The uptake of technologies has proven to be an important lever for increasing the productivity of the mining sector. This paper provides a comprehensive analysis of mine-level productivity using global data of copper, gold, and platinum from 1991 to 2020. Various drivers of productivity have been analysed to draw policy insights. Empirical findings reveal significant disparities in terms of technical efficiency and productivity across mines and regions. The further decomposition of total factor productivity (TFP) into its different components suggests that the adoption of innovative practices and investment in technology adoption could improve the overall productivity of these commodities sectors. Our findings also suggest that an appropriate input mix and optimal scale of production could boost platinum mining productivity. Regional disparities in the productivity of different commodities sectors (e.g., South Africa vs. Zimbabwe) give policymakers insights into how to support production scale and productivity through appropriate input mixes.

Keywords

• mining innovation
• technology
• efficiency and productivity
• scale and scope economies
• DEA