New EITI Chair: Critical minerals race demands more transparency, not less 

The global race to secure critical minerals must strengthen, not sideline, transparency and good governance, newly appointed Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) Board Chair Maria van der Hoeven told the International Mining and Resources Conference + Expo (IMARC) in Sydney today.

In her first engagement with industry just three weeks after her appointment, Ms van der Hoeven said responsibility, security and competitiveness are mutually reinforcing priorities for the mining and resources sector over the next decade.

She said the central ambition coming out of the Brussels meeting was “transparency for shared prosperity”, securing access to resources while ensuring producing countries and their citizens benefited from them.

But she added said transparency also made good business sense, as poor governance, unclear agreements and excluded communities can undermine investor confidence, project development and long-term commercial success.

Ms van der Hoeven comes to EITI after a career as a Minister in the Dutch Government and was previously the Executive Director of the International Energy Agency. She steps into the EITI role as the industry strives to balance the challenges of decarbonisation, the race to secure the minerals needed for the global energy transition, and the rights of communities to share in the wealth and opportunity generated by their resources.

Ms van der Hoeven said the key focus areas for the EITI range across disclosure into accountability, making requirements practical and effective, and strengthening dialogue between governments, companies and civil society. As investment, strategic competition and expectations of the sector increase, Ms van der Hoeven said governance must remain a foundation for decisions, not an obstacle to faster development.

“This added pressure should not lead to less governance,” Ms van der Hoeven said. “Transparency becomes more important, not less important.”

She warned that unclear agreements, poorly managed revenues and excluded communities could not only undermine investment but wipe away the trust that the industry had worked hard to build with communities.

This means embedding responsible practices in business models from the outset, engaging communities early and ensuring public commitments are reflected in operational decisions, not just in reems of meaningless data. Information needs to be reliable, accessible and placed in context.

“Data are just facts and figures. The point is, what are you going to do with them? The success is not the volume of data. It’s how governments, companies, and citizens use this information.”

She urged companies to consider rapidly changing community expectations alongside technical, market and investment assumptions. Scenario planning could help expose vulnerabilities that might otherwise go unnoticed and allow businesses to adapt before those risks threatened their social licence to operate.

Ms van der Hoeven highlighted three EITI strategic priorities: tackling corruption, strengthening domestic revenue mobilisation and informing the energy transition. Transparency about company ownership and resource revenues would help countries and citizens understand whether resource development was delivering public value. However, single actor can manage the transition alone, she said.

“At the end of the day, we are in it together. Effective collaboration must reinforce and not replace individual accountability,” she said.

The ultimate goal is shared prosperity, ensuring that the value of natural resources reached producing countries and their citizens.  For a sector whose projects span decades, trust, confidence and credibility will be essential to delivering on that promise, she said.

About IMARC

The International Mining and Resources Conference + Expo (IMARC) is Australia’s largest and most influential mining event, bringing together more than 12,000 mining executives, investors, policymakers, technology providers and industry leaders from over 120 countries.

Organised by Beacon Events, IMARC 2026 takes place from 27–29 October at ICC Sydney, providing a global platform for mining investment, international collaboration, innovation and commercial partnerships.

Media enquiries and interview requests contact  pr@imarcglobal.com

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