National Instrument 43-101

National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101") is a securities regulatory instrument that governs how companies can disclose mining-related information in Canada. Its rules aim to prevent companies from sharing inaccurate or misleading information about their mineral assets with prospective investors and the public. It is overseen and enforced by the Canadian Securities Administrators.

NI 43-101 applies broadly to companies both public and private, and to a variety of disclosures types including mineral exploration reports, reporting of resources and reserves, presentations, oral comments, and websites. NI 43-101 covers mineral products such, precious metals and solid energy commodities as well as bulk minerals, dimension stone, precious stones and mineral sands commodities.

National Instrument 43-101 is comparable to the Joint Ore Reserves Committee Code (JORC Code) which regulates the publication of mineral exploration reports on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX). It is also broadly comparable with the South African Code for the Reporting of Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves (SAMREC). The reporting codes are, however, not entirely congruent in practice, in that NI 43-101 is more prescriptive in terms of the manner in which mineral exploration reporting is presented, although the content of the technical reports, and the scientific rigors to which the mineral resource classifications within them are put, are often very similar.

For TSX listing purposes, an NI 43-101 Technical Report would have to be accompanied by a Report prepared in accordance with NI 43-101. For ASX listings, a JORC Mineral Resource Statement needs to be accompanied by a Valmin Valuation Report, while for JSE listings, a Competent Person's Report (CPRs), which is compliant with SAMREC and The South African Code for the Valuation of Mineral Assets (SAMVAL), needs to be submitted.

In many cases, NI 43-101 and JORC Code technical reports are considered inter-changeable and may be accepted by either regulatory body in cases of dual listed entities and, indeed, are accepted as the de facto industry reporting standard by many other jurisdictions which lack similar rigorous reporting standards or internationally recognized industry professional bodies. The LSE, for instance, accepts CPRs, Qualified Person's Reports (QPRs), and Mineral Resource Statements, compiled using JORC, SAMREC and SAMVAL, or NI 43-101, when accompanied by a NI51-101 Valuation Form, for listing on the LSE. Likewise, the Hong Kong Stock Exchange accepts reports prepared in accordance with NI 43-101, SAMREC or JORC.