I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: I’m an optimist. I’m of the belief that, if you want a positive outcome, an optimistic attitude is the bare minimum requirement to see it through. In this industry, and many others with tides like it, it just makes sense to keep that in mind, even if sometimes it sits in the very back corners.
Market analysts have their methods to determine what they feel is coming in the short- and long-term, then they are paid to share that – well, educated opinion – with the world, at least the parts of the world that hinge their tomorrows on such things. Ever notice the amplified panic at grocery stores when a storm nears? It’s the same idea: prepare for the worst and hope for the best, but don’t let all of the educated opinions send your worries into the stratosphere.
With the knowledge that I do not fancy myself a market analyst, but as a longtime mining trade editor with my ear always to the ground, my educated opinion and optimism does count for something. (After all, you’re still reading!) The proof I see of these shifts come to my email inbox, with excited pitches about new products and research, and at mining shows and conferences, where the ‘buzz’ around a venue can be very literally felt as the language used changes and the gleam returns to the eyes of both salespeople and end users.
This editor is just days returned from the MINExpo International 2024 event in Las Vegas. If you were there, chances are you either heard or felt what I’m about to say: wow. As someone who remembers the not-so distant past 2008 MINExpo that tried hard to shoo away a dark cloud that was the incoming market downturn, as well as the post-Covid 2021 convention, when many were still unable to make the trip to Nevada, the just-ended 2024 show was a breath of fresh air. As that young generation likes to say, it had the ‘vibes’ that this industry has been targeting for some time.
Do market changes arrive on a feeling? Of course not, but the numbers certainly don’t lie. The National Mining Association announced just as we prepared for print of this issue that it “broke all records” with MINExpo International 2024. How does a preliminary count of 45,000 attendees sound? How about over 2,000 exhibitors booked from 148 countries?
“The response this year was beyond what we could have expected with unparalleled networking and dealmaking like we’ve never seen before,” said NMA President and CEO Rich Nolan. “Everyone stepped up their game and the results were extraordinary.”
Certainly bodes well for things to come. Which is what I call a fantastic segue to another event seeing an unprecedented response: the 2025 West Virginia Coal Show. Set for April 15-16, 2025, at the Charleston Convention Center and Coliseum, we are absolutely floored by the response so far. We sold out space for last year’s inaugural event, and – here’s my optimism again – I think we’re on our way to a repeat. Let’s put it this way: if you haven’t booked space yet, do not wait until the last minute. Plans – and booth space – are moving very rapidly. If you’re headed to the heart of Appalachia to join us next April, keep watching – more information on lodging and registration are to come.
Donna Schmidt
Editor, North American Mining magazine
[email protected]
X: @Dschmidt_NAM