The importance of public investment planning for incentivizing and developing private investment is exemplified by Chile’s PROPIR instrument (Regional Public Investment Program). PROPIR is a planning and budgeting tool that details all public spending committed to carrying out studies, projects, and programs in each region during the budget year. In practice, it requires private companies to provide information to the state and, vice versa, the state to share program pipelines and regulatory timelines—so that joint efforts are strengthened and both sectors can contribute to broad-based development. This collaboration must not only benefit mining and energy suppliers, but also the full supplier chain and collaborating organizations. The goal is to add value to services, improve efficiency, and ensure the sustainability of investment and development in sectors where timing, reliability, and risk management are critical—namely mining and energy. Today, I would like to outline two paths: (1) policy and governance, and (2) public-private collaboration mechanisms—specifically tailored to mining and energy ecosystems.
-
Policy and Governance 1.1 Strengthen the role of government to enable private investment There are two complementary ways to do this: A. Establish a formal Public-Private Information Exchange Framework Create a legal basis and a clear set of data types, frequencies, and confidentiality rules for information shared between private firms and the state. • Define roles, responsibilities, and escalation paths for regional authorities, sector ministries (e.g., mining/energy regulators and planning bodies), and private-sector representatives. • Include explicit provisions for sensitive information commonly relevant in mining and energy, such as project phasing, procurement capacity, operational constraints, and grid/interconnection timelines. B. Integrate information sharing into PROPIR governance (Chile as reference) Embed standardized private-sector data inputs into PROPIR regional planning cycles and budget approvals, ensuring mining and energy priorities are consistently reflected in public spending decisions. • Require regional investment committees to review private-sector inputs during PROPIR prioritization (e.g., for studies and enabling infrastructure tied to mining output and energy supply). • Include validation steps to ensure that private inputs inform public project scoping—without turning PROPIR into a purely private planning exercise.
-
Public-Private Collaboration Mechanisms 2.1 Regional collaboration platforms and forums Create structured multi-stakeholder spaces that allow continuous alignment between public pipelines and private execution realities. • Hold regular multi-stakeholder meetings (e.g., quarterly) with chambers of commerce, large and small private enterprises, engineering/consulting firms, universities, mining contractors, energy developers, and regional governments. • Use these forums to review PROPIR pipelines related to: mining enabling infrastructure (water, transport access, logistics corridors), energy projects and system reinforcements (renewables integration, transmission/distribution constraints), and permitting and technical studies that unblock investment. • Launch sector-focused pilots with joint working groups (e.g., “Critical Minerals & Mining Supply Chain,” “Renewable Integration & Grid Readiness,” “Water-Energy-Mining Nexus”).
2.2 Joint market intelligence and demand signaling Reduce mismatch between supply capacity and public demand by enabling two-way signaling. • Private firms provide demand forecasts, supplier capacity, procurement timelines, and innovation needs (e.g., decarbonization technologies, energy storage pilots, efficient processing services). • The state shares budgetary constraints, program pipelines, and regulatory timelines affecting mining and energy implementation (e.g., study schedules, permitting milestones, tender calendars).
2.3 Data standards, transparency, and mining/energy-specific dashboards Develop unified data standards and transparency mechanisms to improve decision quality. • Create a regional data dictionary and common data formats for: project pipelines (studies → construction → operation), capacity and lead times (engineering, EPC, specialized services), timelines and risk profiles (grid constraints, permitting delays, supply chain bottlenecks), economic and impact indicators (jobs, local procurement, environmental and social safeguards). • Publish a regional data portal: open-access summaries for non-sensitive information, and restricted-access datasets for proprietary or confidential details. • Implement a regional investment dashboard showing funded, authorized, and ongoing PROPIR initiatives related to mining and energy, linked to authorized private-sector inputs (e.g., capacity readiness, interconnection milestones, demand projections).
2.4 Incentives and financing aligned to collaboration Align incentives to encourage consistent and high-quality data sharing and joint delivery. • Provide tax incentives, grant co-funding, or priority access to “ripe” PROPIR opportunities for firms that reliably provide quality data and participate in joint projects. • Establish a regional “early warning” fund to address bottlenecks common in mining and energy: financing gaps for supplier diversification, specialized workforce shortages, and infrastructure delays needed for commissioning.
2.5 Capacity building and streamlined administrative processes Build the ability to produce, manage, and use mining/energy-relevant data. • Train private-sector teams on data quality and lifecycle management relevant to: project phasing, procurement lead times, logistics and infrastructure dependencies, environmental and social compliance information (where permitted). • Train public-sector staff on privacy, security, and data governance. • Digitalize end-to-end workflows for: submission, validation, approval, monitoring and reporting.
