Skip to main content
Marsh logo

Exploration Mining Insurance for Canadian Junior Miners

For publicly traded, Canadian-headquartered junior exploration mining companies, one bundled program covering property/casualty, directors and officers liability, and cyber liability.

Get a quote

What’s included in our Exploration Mining Insurance Package?

1

Single application form

3

Lines of insurance coverage

A rated

insurance companies (AM Best)

With one application form and for one price, you get three coordinated lines of coverage, each placed with carriers rated A (or better) by AM Best, who have been selected specifically for their appetite and track record in exploration-stage mining.

selected option
  • Full commercial general liability (CGL) policy with sudden / accidental pollution liability extension
  • Full errors and omissions (E&O) policy
  • Limited aviation and helipad coverage for remote site access
  • Coverage for owned or rented exploration equipment, including underground
  • Extension of coverage for drilled core samples
  • A market built to transition you into construction and production

Why junior miners need it: The moment your exploration permit is issued, you assume  full liability for every incident, injury, and environmental event at your site —  well before mine construction begins.

  • Broad definition of insured, including subsidiaries, past/present/future directors and officers, and board observers
  • Broad definition of claim, covering regulatory, civil, criminal, and administrative proceedings
  • No pollution exclusion
  • Side A difference in conditions (DIC) coverage, protecting personal assets when the company cannot indemnify
  • Company and personal crisis/reputation expense coverage, and asset and liberty protection costs
  • Low-touch, application-free placement with standardized wordings for fast turnaround

Why junior miners need it: Executive risk in mining is driven by public disclosures — reserve estimates, business plans, CAPEX expectations — and by claims from regulators, creditors, and stakeholders. Your directors and officers carry personal exposure to multi-million-dollar claims, often before a mine is ever built.

  • Flexible limit options of $2 million CAD or $5 million CAD
  • Modular coverage tailored to small and mid-size mining firms
  • Streamlined, no-application eligibility for companies with revenue under $250 million CAD*
  • Short-form application path for larger entities or more complex risk profiles
  • Access to cyber advisory support as to which controls need to be built up before placement

*Subject to confirmation of baseline cybersecurity controls (like MFA, EDR/NDR, IT/OT segmentation, etc.) and no prior cyber incidents.

 

Why junior miners need it: Exploration companies increasingly run on digital infrastructure they may not think of as a cyber target — automated industrial control systems, OT not always cleanly segmented from IT, remote survey data, and proprietary geological datasets that represent the company's core value.

Built for the exploration-stage junior miner

This package is designed for companies still in the discovery phase of the mining lifecycle (exploration and pre-production; not yet in mine construction) already carrying producer-level liability and governance exposure, without a producer-sized balance sheet.

Your company likely fits this profile if:

  • Canadian-headquartered and publicly traded — typically on a Canadian stock exchange (TSX or TSXV).
  • Core activity is geological exploration — identifying and assessing deposits such as gold, copper, lithium, nickel, or uranium — not full-scale extraction.
  • Asset base includes technical and geological data, field and camp equipment, drill programs, and possibly option agreements or joint ventures.
  • Pre-construction, pre-production stage — has not yet broken ground on mine construction or entered active production.

In short, if you are a public company and haven't yet poured first concrete, this package was built around your risk profile. And if you’re currently privately owned or thinking about listing — we’re happy to find a solution that works for you.

 

Why bundle, rather than buy each line separately?

Going to market separately for property/casualty, D&O, and cyber coverages means re-explaining your business to multiple underwriters, each applying their own view of mining risk to a company most insurers consider too small to prioritize.

Buying each line separately Marsh’s Exploration Mining Insurance Package
Re-explain your risk profile to every underwriter, from scratch Pre-negotiated access to carriers who already underwrite this segment
Evaluated in isolation, below most insurers' premium thresholds Priced and placed as part of a ~400-account portfolio, not a one-off
Three separate applications, timelines, and renewal dates Standardized, often application-free placement across lines
Gaps between policies fall on you to identify and close One broker accountable for consistent terms across all three policies
No leverage to negotiate broader wordings or better pricing A program structured to scale with you into construction and production

Why purchase this package through Marsh

Exploration mining faces a narrow, specialized insurance market. Most generalist brokers and insurers simply don't engage with it — Marsh has built the relationships and claims expertise to make it work for you.

Direct relationships with AM Best A-rated (or better!) insurance carriers that actively seek exploration-stage mining risk, not ones that need to be convinced to underwrite it.

Mining claims — environmental incidents, securities disclosure disputes, regulatory action, site liability — require a claims team fluent in the sector's nuances, not a generalist adjuster learning mining terminology mid-claim. Marsh's mining practice brings that specialized advocacy to every client.

Marsh already supports roughly 400 exploration mining clients across Canada. That scale lets us negotiate this package as a portfolio opportunity rather than a series of individual submissions — securing pricing, retentions, and policy wordings that an individual exploration mining company simply cannot achieve alone.

Marsh's mining practice supports exploration mining companies across the full lifecycle — from exploration, through construction and development (builders risk, project cargo, wrap-up liability, surety for reclamation obligations), to full operational programs as a producer. As your company advances, your broker experience does too.

Several lines in this package use standardized wordings and minimal or no-application processes. For companies meeting baseline criteria, that can mean faster quotes and faster binding — so you can focus on exploration, not paperwork.

Frequently asked questions

A bundled insurance program that combines property/casualty, directors and officers (D&O) liability, and cyber liability coverage into a single placement, designed specifically for early-stage mining companies that are exploring for mineral deposits but not yet in production.

Companies that are Canadian-headquartered and publicly traded on a Canadian exchange (TSX or TSXV), and in the exploration or pre-production phase — meaning they haven't yet broken ground on mine construction or entered active production. 

*Private companies and those considering a listing may also qualify with additional questions.

Many insurers apply broad mining exclusions even to companies with no extraction activity, and exploration-stage premiums often fall below the minimum thresholds large mining-focused insurers require. This creates a narrow, fragmented insurance market that needs a broker with specific carrier relationships to navigate.

Bundling provides pre-negotiated access to carriers that already underwrite this segment, portfolio-driven pricing and broader wordings than a single small company could secure alone, lower administrative burdens through standardized processes, and one point of accountability across all three lines.

A dedicated Marsh team member will reach out to you typically within one business day. Several lines use standardized wordings and streamlined or no-application processes. Exploration miners meeting baseline eligibility criteria can typically expect faster quotes and binding than a standard individual mining insurance submission.

Marsh's mining practice supports companies across the full lifecycle. As you transition into construction, your program can expand to include builders risk, project cargo, marine delay, wrap-up liability, and surety for reclamation obligations — and into full operational programs once in production.

Get your quick quote

Tell us about your mining exploration program and a member of Marsh's mining practice will contact you within two business days.

Get a quote