This follows surveys in 2013 and 2014 and the release of the CEO Insights report this year in which the biggest names in global mining took part in a review of innovation strategy across the world’s top miners.

There will not be a CEO Insights report from this survey but there will be an Innovation: State of Play report.

VCI founding partner Dr Graeme Stanway said the aim was to create a “think tank” platform to support industry benchmarking and promote discussion on how businesses developed innovation strategy for competitive advantage.

“Much of the material that is available on innovation is focused on technology,” he said.

“The Innovation: State of Play platform is more about strategy and provides a roadmap for every executive involved in the global mining industry.”

The 2016 survey will allow detailed comparison with 2013 and 2014 data on different aspects of how the innovation ecosystem worked in the mining industry and what could be done to move it to a level enjoyed by leading innovative industries such as agribusiness, automotive and telecommunications.

EMI director Mark Stickells said the survey would help the industry understand how to apply innovation strategy in a cost-conscious and highly competitive global marketplace.

“It will be interesting to see how this year’s survey results differ from the previous survey in 2014, when the pressures of a downturn in global commodity prices had only just begun to bite,” he said.

This survey and previous reports are available here.