Explainer
What is a JORC resource?
A JORC resource is a Mineral Resource estimated and reported under the JORC Code - the Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves, maintained by the Joint Ore Reserves Committee. It is the standard that governs how listed companies in Australasia publicly report what they have found in the ground.
What the JORC Code is for
The JORC Code sets minimum standards for public reporting of exploration results, mineral resources and ore reserves. Its purpose is to ensure that statements made to the market are based on sound evidence, transparently disclosed, and prepared by a qualified professional. In Australia, the Code is mandatory for reporting on the ASX, giving investors a consistent basis for comparing projects.
Crucially, JORC governs public reporting, not the underlying geology itself. It is about how confidence in a deposit is classified and communicated, so that 'a resource' means something specific and comparable rather than a marketing claim.
Resource and reserve categories
Mineral Resources are classified, in order of increasing geological confidence, as Inferred, Indicated and Measured. Inferred resources are based on limited sampling; Indicated and Measured reflect progressively denser data and greater certainty about grade and continuity.
Ore Reserves are the economically mineable part of a Measured or Indicated resource, and are classified as Probable or Proved. The step from resource to reserve requires applying 'modifying factors' - mining, processing, metallurgical, economic, marketing, legal, environmental, social and governmental considerations - that determine what is actually economic to extract.
The Competent Person
Every JORC report must be based on work by, and signed off by, a Competent Person - a suitably qualified and experienced professional who is a member of a recognised professional organisation and takes responsibility for the statements made. This accountability is central to the Code's credibility.
When you read that a company has an 'Indicated resource of X tonnes at Y grade', the classification and the Competent Person's sign-off are what give that number weight. Without them, a tonnage-and-grade figure is not a JORC resource.
JORC and its global equivalents
JORC is part of a family of aligned reporting standards under the CRIRSCO umbrella. Canada uses National Instrument 43-101, the United States uses the SEC's S-K 1300 rules, South Africa uses SAMREC, and Europe uses PERC. The categories and principles are broadly equivalent, which matters for explorers and investors working across Australia, Canada and the USA.
For anyone comparing projects internationally, knowing that an Indicated resource under JORC maps closely to its NI 43-101 or S-K 1300 counterpart makes cross-border assessment far more reliable.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
- What are the JORC resource categories?
- Mineral Resources are classified as Inferred, Indicated and Measured in order of increasing geological confidence. Ore Reserves, the economically mineable part, are classified as Probable and Proved.
- What is a Competent Person under JORC?
- A Competent Person is a suitably qualified and experienced professional, a member of a recognised professional body, who takes responsibility for a public report of exploration results, mineral resources or ore reserves.
- What is the JORC equivalent in Canada and the USA?
- Canada uses NI 43-101 and the USA uses the SEC's S-K 1300 rules. Both are aligned with JORC under the CRIRSCO family of standards, so the categories are broadly equivalent.
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