Abstract
SYNOPSIS Investing in a mining venture can be risky and stakeholders need transparent, unbiased reports to understand the Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves a mining company holds. Readability and textual choice can be used consciously to manipulate perceptions, or it can be done unconsciously. This exploratory study investigates the readability and textual choice of supplementary Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves Reports of companies listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. The results indicate that narrative manipulation occurs in these reports through word choices that make the reports difficult to read, as well as specific narrative selections. This reduces the informational value of the reports. The results of the study will be useful to various stakeholders, such as mining company management, investors, investment specialists, financial analysts, and even employees and the general community, who all use these reports to make important decisions. It is also useful for the preparers of the Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves Reports, Competent Persons, and other technical specialists to be aware of readability and that certain textual choices can affect the interpretation of these reports. It is recommended that bodies such as the JSE and the SAMREC and SAMVAL Code committees consider adding a plain language requirement to regulations, guidelines, and codes to ensure transparent, unbiased, and objective reports. Keywords: Corporate reporting, Mineral Resources. Mineral Reserves, narrative style, readability.
Highlights
One can argue that a Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves Report is a technical report and is by nature a complex document requiring complex language
The general narrative of a Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves Report should be written in a way to make it accessible to more stakeholders
Despite the fact that there will undoubtedly be advanced technical terms in a Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves Report, the use of wordy items and passive voice sentences, of which there were many in the reports analysed, can cause confusion if not used cautiously or for a specific purpose
Summary
The term ‘Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves Report’ will be used to refer to a supplementary document produced by a company as part of its IAR and which forms part of the corporate reports made available to a variety of stakeholders who depend on the information for decision-making. These reports are often summarized from CPs Reports (in the case of new listings and material change reports) or from a host of internal data and information in the case of established mining companies preparing their IARs
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