Commercial Intelligence

The following accounts give examples of recent COMMERCIAL INTELLIGENCE reports completed by Roskill Consulting Group. To protect confidentiality, client names & identifying data have been omitted.

Commercial intelligence on the UK salt market

Assignment

The client was developing a project to provide gas storage in the UK through the creation of caverns in salt strata. As part of a national planning enquiry appeal, Roskill was retained to provide a detailed review on the UK salt market, with particular reference to salt reserves, national legislation with regard to salt resources and production, and current and future domestic requirements for salt.

Approach

Given the size of the research budget and the timescale for the work, most of the research was desk-based, backed-up with some primary research with key players in the UK salt industry. Roskill was able to provide a detailed overview of the UK salt market, as well as commercial intelligence on the major UK salt producers and suppliers. The research also included a detailed analysis of UK salt reserves and resources, government legislation with regard to the conservation of these resources, forecasts of future UK demand for salt and calculations relating to the adequacy of salt reserves to meet the needs of future generations in the UK. Roskill was also required to provide assistance to the client’s legal team and to offer expert witness testimony at the planning appeal itself.

Result

The client’s planning appeal was ultimately successful and the project development remains on schedule.

Review of rare earth mining, cracking and processing in China

Assignment

The client required a deeper understanding of the Chinese rare earth industry including the impact of government policies on supply to the west. The study was also required to identify the ownership structure of mining in Inner Mongolia, Sichuan and the southern Chinese provinces.

Approach

A Roskill analyst from London together with Roskill’s China based researcher carried out a programme of field research that began with interviews with leading representatives of government organisations such as the NDRC (now MIIT) and the State Engineering and Research Centre for Rare Earths. A sample of managers form leading miners and processing companies based in Inner Mongolia, Sichuan, Guangdong, Fujian, Jiangxi and Jiangsu was then interviewed to determine the impact of mining quotas, export quotas and tightening environmental legislation on production and exports. The resulting report drew together the evidence from around 30 in-depth interviews, which assessed the impact of the tightening regulation of the rare earth industry, the realisation that rare earth resources needed conserving and effectiveness of attempts to control mining, particularly in the southern and western provinces.

Results

The client acquired an independent in-depth view of the Chinese rare earth industry, which helped them to understand how it was likely to perform in the following years and the possible ways in which a western producer could fill potential supply deficits arising from changes in Chinese policy.