Books in Review (March 28, 1988)

MINING 1988, A Financial Times International Year Book. Editor, Helen Wilcock. Published by Longman Group UK Ltd., Westgate House, The High, Harlow, Essex CM20 1NE, UK. Price $105(C) ($94.50 on standing order), distributed in Canada by Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 55 Horner Ave., Toronto, Ont. M8Z 4X6.

Bigger than ever, (up to 568 pages), this Mining Yearbook is into its 101st year of publication and is an international directory of companies involved in the mining, production and distribution of minerals and metals throughout the world.

There’s a wealth of detail on 713 major mining companies, including such useful information as head office addresses, telephone, telex, fax and cable numbers, boards of directors and their functions, senior management listings, operations locations, production figures, and recent acquisitions, etc.

As usual in this book, each company entry carries a 3-year comparative table of financial results, in this case 1984 through 1986.

There are three major indexes to help the reader along. A company index lists all companies mentioned in the book alphabetically, by name, with main entries printed in bold type for ease of reference.

A geographical index helps locate companies according to the country or countries in which they operate, with maps included.

And finally, there’s a product index identifying companies according to the specific metals or minerals they produce.

Also helpful is a comprehensive list of professional associations, ranging from Canada’s Prospectors and Developers Association and the Mining Association of Canada, to the Nigerian Chamber of Mines and the Australian Mining Industry Council.

Like the Canadian Mines Handbook, this U.K. Yearbook gives us a comprehensive listing of mining companies.