JORC Code 2012 Edition
JORC Code 2012. Reporting of Mineral Resources and Reserves
The Australasian Code for public reporting of exploration results, mineral resources, and ore reserves. Competent Person obligations, Table 1 disclosures, and field evidence requirements.
The JORC Code, formally the Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves, is published by the Joint Ore Reserves Committee. The current binding edition is JORC 2012, and it governs all public reporting by ASX-listed miners and explorers. JORC is designed to give investors a consistent, comparable, and trustworthy basis for evaluating mineral assets, and the burden of producing that trust falls squarely on the Competent Person and the documentation they sign off.
What JORC 2012 covers
The scope and focus of the standard in plain language.
Public reporting of mineral data
JORC governs how exploration results, mineral resources, and ore reserves are reported to the public, including ASX announcements, prospectuses, technical reports, and any other document a reasonable investor might rely on.
Three classification categories
Mineral resources are classified as Inferred, Indicated, or Measured (in increasing geological confidence). Ore reserves are classified as Probable or Proved. The Code prescribes how to move between categories.
The Competent Person system
Every JORC public statement must be made by, or under the supervision of, a Competent Person, a qualified individual with at least five years of relevant experience and good standing in a recognised professional body.
Table 1, the assessment checklist
JORC Table 1 is the structured set of disclosures the Competent Person must address: sampling techniques, drilling, recovery, logging, sub-sampling, assay quality, verification, location, spacing, orientation, security, and audits.
Key obligations
What the standard actually requires of inspectors, operators, or duty holders.
Engage a Competent Person with appropriate experience
The CP must be a member or fellow of AusIMM, AIG, or a recognised overseas professional body, with at least five years of experience relevant to the style of mineralisation and the type of activity.
Address every relevant Table 1 element
Reporters must consider every item in Table 1 sections 1, 2, 3 and 4 as applicable, and disclose how each was addressed. "Not applicable" is acceptable when justified.
Document sample collection and preparation
Sampling techniques (chip, core, RC, channel), sample preparation procedures, sample sizes, and the reasoning for them must all be disclosed. Auditors will trace findings back to source.
Establish and document QA/QC
The CP must disclose use of standards (CRMs), blanks, duplicates, and the procedures for quality assurance. Lab accreditation (ISO 17025) must be referenced.
Maintain chain of custody
JORC implicitly requires custody documentation from drill bit through to lab. Custody breaks are a frequent auditor finding and a risk to the validity of the resource estimate.
Disclose any material changes
Resources and reserves are not static. Material changes must be re-disclosed in compliant form, with the CP's sign-off.
Common pitfalls
Where inspectors and duty holders most often get caught out.
- !Treating Table 1 as a checkbox exercise, auditors and the ASX will read the substance, not the formatting.
- !Omitting QA/QC documentation because "the lab is good", accreditation does not substitute for documented internal controls.
- !Relying on paper sample tags and field notebooks that introduce transcription errors and gaps.
- !Failing to update the CP statement when material changes occur, the Code does not allow stale disclosures.
- !Engaging a CP who lacks experience in the specific style of mineralisation, five years of experience in nickel sulphides does not qualify someone to sign off on epithermal gold.
- !Inadequate chain of custody for samples between drill site, geologist, courier, and laboratory.
How InspectAndGo helps with JORC 2012
- Field capture for exploration and resource definition with GPS-verified coordinates and timestamps on every sample
- Chain of custody workflow with barcoded sample IDs, custody handover events, and laboratory acknowledgement
- Photo documentation per sample location and outcrop, embedded with GPS and capture metadata
- Audit-ready inspection records that support the Competent Person sign-off
- Structured templates for Table 1 evidence, sampling, drilling, recovery, logging, sub-sampling, assay quality
- Multi-language support for international exploration teams
- Offline-first operation for remote exploration sites with no connectivity
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Read articleFrequently asked questions
Is JORC the same as NI 43-101?
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No. JORC is the Australasian standard maintained by the Joint Ore Reserves Committee and binding for ASX reporting. NI 43-101 is the Canadian Securities Administrators' instrument and binding for reporting in Canada. Both serve similar purposes and are mutually recognised in many situations, but they have different procedural requirements and different professional body recognition.
Who can be a Competent Person?
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A CP must be a member or fellow of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (AusIMM), the Australian Institute of Geoscientists (AIG), or a recognised overseas professional organisation. They must have at least five years of relevant experience for the style of mineralisation and the activity being undertaken.
What happens if a JORC report has errors?
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Material errors must be corrected and re-disclosed. The CP can be subject to disciplinary action by their professional body. The reporting company faces ASX and ASIC scrutiny, and in serious cases potential securities law action. Investors who relied on the misleading report may also have civil claims.
Is there a new edition of JORC coming?
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The Joint Ore Reserves Committee has been consulting on a new edition of the JORC Code. Reporters should monitor JORC announcements and plan to update internal procedures when the new edition is published. JORC 2012 remains the current binding edition until the new one is released and adopted.
How does ESG reporting interact with JORC?
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JORC focuses on the technical disclosure of mineral resources and reserves. ESG reporting (under ISSB IFRS S1/S2, GRI 14, TCFD) covers a broader set of obligations around environment, social, and governance factors. The two are complementary, increasingly, the same field inspection records support both.
Build audit-ready field evidence for JORC
InspectAndGo gives exploration teams and Competent Persons a defensible field capture system. GPS-verified, offline-first, chain-of-custody enabled.