‘World authority’ on megaprojects to speak at World Mining Congress 2026
The organisers of the upcoming edition of the World Mining Congress 2026 have secured Bent Flyvbjerg, Co-Author of the book ‘How Big Things Get Done’ as a keynote speaker for the event, taking place in Lima, Peru, from June 24 to 26, 2026.
Regarded as the world’s foremost scientific authority in megaproject management and recognised as the most cited academic in this field, Flyvbjerg will be one of a number of the most influential leaders and boldest thinkers speaking at the event, which has an official theme of ‘Mining for the Future – Trust, Transformation Technology.
Flyvbjerg is an Emeritus Professor at the Saïd Business School of the University of Oxford and Chair and Co-Founder of Oxford Global Projects, an institution dedicated to improving how megaprojects are planned and delivered worldwide. His experience beyond academia has enabled him to advise the governments of the US, the UK, the Netherlands and Denmark, as well as Fortune 500 companies, multi-lateral banks and organisations such as the European Commission and the United Nations.
The opportunity to hear Flyvbjerg is especially relevant for the global mining sector at a time when projects are becoming increasingly complex, costly and urgent, the organisers say. His book, ‘How Big Things Get Done’ (2023), written together with Canadian author Dan Gardner, delves into why some major projects achieve extraordinary results while others fail spectacularly.
Flyvbjerg notes that, with so many resources committed to large-scale projects, the responsibility to plan them properly has never been greater. “The potential benefits of building the right projects the right way are enormous – and matched only by the vast waste involved in taking on the wrong projects or executing them poorly,” he said.
In his article, ‘What You Should Know About Megaprojects, and Why,’ he cites estimates from the McKinsey Global Institute projecting annual infrastructure spending of $3.4 trillion through 2030 – about 4% of global GDP. When mining, oil and gas, defence, aerospace and ICT are included, the value of megaprojects rises to between $6 trillion and $9 trillion per year, equivalent to roughly 8% of global GDP.
When these projects fail, the impact can be profound. As Flyvbjerg notes, “When projects of such magnitude fail, it’s not just the companies involved that suffer –entire national economies can feel the consequences.”
During the World Mining Congress 2026, Flyvbjerg will lead a plenary session based on what he calls “the science of making large projects successful”, focusing on how to reduce delays, manage risks, shorten timelines and design robust projects from the start.
International Mining is a media sponsor of the World Mining Congress 2026.
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