The vital mining industry must look beyond geology to policy, capital, and productivity measures to unlock value, PwC finds

• For the world’s top 40 mining companies, 2025 was a solid year as revenues grew 3.3% to US$909 billion and net profits reached US$120 billion.
• While geology determines who participates in mining, the ability to make it investable and the positioning of capital providers shape who captures the most value. Governments need to create frameworks that support stable investment and profitability.
• Key trends include productivity and technology, with AI adoption set to drive significant gains for mining companies.

Jakarta, 29 June 2026 — The world’s top 40 mining companies delivered a solid performance in 2025, with revenues rising 3.3% to US$909 billion and net profits reaching US$120 billion. However, according to PwC’s Mine 2026, long-term value in the sector will increasingly be shaped not by geology alone, but by the ability of countries and companies to turn policy ambition into investable, technology-enabled, and resilient supply chains.

The industry is under growing pressure as it navigates energy security challenges, geopolitical fragmentation, rapid technological change, and rising societal expectations. Demand for critical minerals such as copper, lithium, and rare earth elements continues to accelerate, driven by energy transition and electrification trends. At the same time, shifting geopolitics is reshaping global trade flows, prompting countries to localise processing and secure more resilient supply chains.

Sacha Winzenried, PwC Indonesia Energy, Utilities & Resources Advisor, said, “Capturing value from these evolving dynamics will require close collaboration among mining companies, policymakers, investors, and end users, as the sector moves from ambition to execution.”

Turning policy into investable outcomes

While access to mineral resources provides a natural advantage, success in critical minerals increasingly depends on factors that can be controlled. Countries risk leaving value untapped if projects face delays in permitting, limited access to capital, or insufficient processing capabilities. Conversely, countries with more modest resource endowments can still play a strategic role if they create conditions that make projects investable, build midstream processing capacity, and enable downstream development.

Sacha Winzenried, PwC Indonesia Energy, Utilities & Resources Advisor, added, “The next phase of global competition in mining will be defined not by ambition, but by the ability to turn policy into capital and capability. However, this shift will take time—developing mines and processing infrastructure can take decades, and existing players continue to hold strong positions.”

The report highlights a number of strategies being taken by policy-makers in key mining jurisdictions around the world. For instance, since 2020, Indonesia has banned exports of raw nickel ore—of which it produces roughly two-thirds of global supply—as part of its strategy to build domestic processing capacity. The country is now seeking to replicate this approach with bauxite, following an export ban introduced in 2023. With reserves of around 2.9 billion dry metric tonnes, representing approximately 10% of global reserves, Indonesia holds significant potential.

The effectiveness of similar policies for bauxite will depend on global market competitiveness and the availability of alternative supply sources. In May 2026, Indonesia also announced plans to centralise commodity exports through a state-run agency, a move that could further influence global metals markets.

Unlocking capital at scale

Investors continue to assess opportunities against strict investability criteria, including the ability to deliver attractive risk-adjusted returns compared to other capital-intensive sectors—particularly given long development timelines and higher levels of uncertainty—as well as clear pathways to revenue generation, supported by mechanisms such as price floors, strategic offtake agreements, or demand guarantees. In addition, supportive operating environments, including permitting certainty and access to processing infrastructure, remain critical considerations.

Capital flows through two distinct ecosystems: large mining companies funding projects internally, and independent developers relying on external investors. The latter continues to face a structural funding gap, often requiring fragmented financing across multiple stages. To bridge this gap, mining companies need to resolve key investment risks earlier in the project lifecycle, while governments can play a critical role in de-risking projects—through policy certainty, permitting pipelines, and market mechanisms—rather than directly replacing private capital.

Accelerating technology and AI adoption

The mining sector has long pursued productivity gains, but has struggled to scale innovation effectively. Advances in data and artificial intelligence (AI) now present an opportunity to close this gap.

PwC’s AI Performance Study shows that companies more advanced in AI adoption can achieve performance gains of up to 7.2 times higher than their peers, driven by a combination of revenue growth and cost optimisation. However, mining currently ranks lowest among industries in PwC’s AI fitness index, reflecting gaps in investment, data infrastructure, and governance. In addition, in PwC’s 29th Global CEO Survey, 40% of mining CEOs report that their company’s technology performance is below expectations.

Sacha Winzenried, PwC Indonesia Energy, Utilities & Resources Advisor, said, “To unlock AI’s full potential, mining companies need to move beyond isolated use cases and focus on three key priorities: using AI not only for efficiency gains but also to support business model reinvention and drive growth; building targeted foundations across data, governance, and workforce capabilities that are aligned to specific use cases; and embedding AI across the enterprise by integrating it into core systems and enabling the automation of high-frequency decisions”.

Stronger AI capabilities can improve transparency, enhance productivity, and increase asset liquidity—making operations more attractive to investors and better positioned in an increasingly consolidating industry.