Minco : 2017 Q2 Management's Discussion and Analysis

MINCO PLC MANAGEMENT DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS For the six-month period ended June 30, 2017

Dated August 22, 2017

(Expressed in US Dollars, except per share amounts)

(Form 51-102F1)

Date: August 22, 2017

GENERAL

The following management discussion and analysis ("MD&A") of financial condition and results of operations of Minco plc ("Minco" or the "Company"), should be read in conjunction with the condensed interim consolidated financial statements and the notes thereto for the six-month period ended June 30, 2017, which have been prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRS"). All dollar amounts are stated in US dollars, unless otherwise noted.

COMPANY OVERVIEW

Minco Plc, registered in the Republic of Ireland and listed on the AIM Market of the London Stock Exchange ("MIO"), is an exploration and development company, currently engaged in zinc-lead exploration in Canada, the United Kingdom and Ireland, and in evaluating a manganese project in New Brunswick, Canada and with investments in zinc‐silver projects in Mexico through holding 30 million shares (approximately 26%) in Xtierra Inc. listed on the TSX Venture Exchange (TSXV- "XAG").

Minco also holds a 2% Net Smelter Return ("NSR") royalty on the Curraghinalt gold property in Northern Ireland, which is being explored and developed by Dalradian Resources Inc. (TSX-"DNA") ("Dalradian").

On June 1, 2017 Minco announced, under Rule 2.5 of the Irish Takeover Panel Act, Takeover Rules 2013, that Dalradian and Minco had reached agreement on the terms of the acquisition of Minco's 2% net smelter return royalty on the Curraghinalt gold deposit by Dalradian (the "Royalty Disposal") in return for the issue of a total of 15,490,666 new Dalradian Shares valued at C$20,000,000, in total, based on the volume weighted average price of Dalradian shares on the Toronto Stock Exchange for the five trading day period ending on the day prior to March 21, 2017, being the date Minco announced that it was in discussions with Dalradian regarding the possible disposal of the royalty.

It is proposed that the Royalty Disposal would be structured as an offer by Dalradian for the acquisition of the entire issued share capital of Minco (the "Offer"). It is intended that the Offer would be implemented by means of a scheme of arrangement, under Section 450 of the Companies Act 2014 of Ireland ("Scheme"). As part of the Scheme, it is proposed that Minco would undertake a demerger of its wholly owned subsidiary Buchans Resources Limited ("Buchans"), a wholly owned subsidiary of Minco, by way of a transfer in specie of the shares of Buchans to Minco Shareholders (the "Demerger").

On 26 July 2017, Minco's shareholders approved the Scheme and the Demerger of Buchans. The Court Hearing of the petition to sanction the Scheme is directed to be heard on 28 August 2017.

Completion of the Offer and Demerger remains subject to satisfaction or waiver of the other Conditions set out in the Scheme Document including the sanction by the Court of the Scheme at the Court Hearing.

Following the Demerger Minco shareholders would be issued 11,618,000 new Dalradian Shares which would represent 75% of the total shares to be issued by Dalradian in connection with the Royalty Disposal. The balance of 3,872,666 new Dalradian Shares, being 25% of the total, would be issued directly to Buchans, which would then be wholly owned by Minco Shareholders.

CENTRAL NEWFOUNDLAND BASE METAL PROJECTS - METALLURGICAL & ECONOMIC STUDIES

During 2016, Minco, through its wholly owned subsidiary Buchans Minerals Corporation ("Buchans Minerals), in a collaboration agreement with Canadian Zinc Corporation (TSX:CZN) successfully completed a research programme to evaluate the metallurgical characteristics of their respective volcanogenic massive sulphide ("VMS") Zn-Pb-Cu-Ag-Au base metal deposits in central Newfoundland.

The metallurgical research study demonstrated that the ore from Minco's Lundberg, Daniels Pond and Bobby's Pond deposits can be successfully processed in a central mill using a sequential flotation flowsheet, and that selective zinc, lead and copper concentrates at marketable grades can be produced from these deposits.

The programme focused its evaluation on five VMS deposits, three held by Minco (Lundberg, Bobbys Pond and Daniels Pond) and two held by Canadian Zinc (Lemarchant and Boomerang-Domino). The Lundberg deposit is the largest, most advanced deposit in terms of resource definition, mine planning (with the potential to have an open pit mine), metallurgical testing and economic studies completed to date. All the other mineral deposits (Bobbys Pond, Daniels Pond, Lemarchant and Boomerang-Domino) are smaller, higher grade deposits, amenable to underground mining, though they are not large enough to individually support a mine and processing operation. The principal goal of the research program was to assess the technical and economic viability of developing a number of these mineral deposits utilizing a common central processing facility.

The metallurgical portion of the program was successful in confirming that selective zinc, lead and copper concentrates at marketable grades can be produced using a common flotation flowsheet for all five deposits. The positive results from the metallurgical test program strongly support the development of the sequential flotation technology for processing of the central Newfoundland deposits using a centralized processing facility.

The economic assessment portion of the program applied a process simulation and cost assessment model (conceptual economic modeling) to evaluate and identify the key factors impacting the operating economics of a centralized processing concept for the production of the base metal concentrates. Multiple conceptual economic scenarios at three potential sites were developed to simulate the proposed centralized milling concept. The variables assessed included the different potential mill sites, with or without DMS, new or used process equipment, mining rate, and processing feedstock composition for each deposit. The outcome of this economic assessment was successful in identifying a number of optimum scenarios, all of which depend on the majority of the feed coming from the larger lower grade Lundberg deposit with supplemental feed coming from the smaller higher grade satellite deposits.

BUCHANS BASE METAL EXPLORATION

Minco, through its wholly owned subsidiary Buchans Minerals continues to focuss its exploration efforts near the former Lucky Strike mine to explore for high-grade resources that may positively impact open pit and underground development of the Company's Lundberg deposit

During the first two quarters of 2017, the program of relogging of historic archived drill cores to assess potential for discovery of additional high-grade resources near the Lundberg deposit continued. This program began in 2013 and to date has relogged 420 surface and underground drill holes totaling 58,431 m of archived drill core previously drilled within

1.5 kilometres of the former Lucky Strike mine, and a further 51,893 m in 165 holes from other prospects located less than

4 kilometres from the Lundberg deposit. Several target areas have been identified and are undergoing further investigation by relogging and may be targeted by follow-up diamond drilling later in 2017 or 2018.

In addition to relogging at Buchans, the Company undertook limited relogging during the quarter to re-assess the Company's Daniels Pond deposit. This work included relogging 20 holes totaling 3,233 metres of core and may be expanded to include the Company's Bobbys Pond deposit during the second half of 2017. The work is being undertaken in response to results generated by the metallurgical research study completed jointly with Canadian Zinc in 2016 that indicates selective zinc, lead and copper concentrates at marketable grades can be produced from several deposits in the district, including the Company's Daniels Pond and Bobbys Pond deposits. Buchans Minerals 's deposits are located less than 20 km south of Buchans, on the opposite side of Red Indian Lake. Canadian Zinc's Lemarchant and Boomerang deposits are also located south of Red Indian Lake, approximately 35 km and 60 km south of Buchans. This program has been initiated to identify areas where further exploration may discover additional resources beneath existing resources that could enhance

development of these deposit as satellite mines contributing to a central processing facility processing Lundberg mineralization augmented by feed from other smaller satellite deposits located south of Red Indian Lake.

LAKE DOUGLAS GOLD, NEWFOUNDLAND

In October of 2016, Buchans Minerals competitively staked 2,075 hectares in central Newfoundland, known as the Lake Douglas project, located 40 km southwest of Buchans project and 20 km southwest of the Daniels Pond and Bobbys Pond deposits. The Lake Douglas Property includes prospective rocks extending between two recently discovered prospects announced by Altius Minerals Corporation (ALS.TSX) within its 21,500 ha Wilding Lake gold project. Altius have since optioned its property to Antler Gold Inc. (ANTL:TSXV) a new Toronto-listed company, which has initiated additional surveys to further explore several newly discovered gold occurrences in bedrock, including channel samples yielding uncut gold values ranging up to 13.9 g/t gold over 4.0 m, plus additional gold prospects in bedrock extending over a 20 kilometre trend.

Buchans's property covers a 3.5 km segment of the prospective trend that is located northeast, along strike of Marathon Gold Corporation's (MOZ.TSX) Valentine Lake project, where Marathon has announced a Measured and Indicated mineral resource estimate of 21.8 million tonnes at an average grade of 1.84 grams of gold per tonne containing 1,292,800 ounces of gold and an Inferred mineral resource of 8.8 million tonnes at an average grade of 1.98 grams of gold per tonne containing 562,600 ounces of gold (Marathon press release dated February 21, 2017) as a potential open pit resource development.

In April 2017, Marathon announced results from two deep holes that demonstrate potential for addition high-grade gold mineralization at depth. Marathon continues to aggressively explore its Valentine Lake property to expand resources at the Marathon Deposit and has expanded their forecasted 2017 drilling estimates from 30,000 metres to 60,000 metres of drilling to be completed in 2017.

Since acquiring the Lake Douglas property, Buchans Minerals has conducted limited initial reconnaissance work on its claims and intends to maintain the property and consider additional work as may be warranted in response to increased activity and attention to this new exploration area.

LEAD-ZINC EXPLORATION, MOATE, COUNTY WESTMEATH, IRELAND

In November 2015 Minco Ireland Limited was granted three new Prospecting Licences PLs 1228, 1229 and 3981, at Moate in County Westmeath, centered on a specific geological target identified by Minco, with potential for zinc -lead mineralization of Tynagh Mine type.

Minco's Moate licences are located along the northwestern margin of the Irish Midland Orefield on the "Tynagh-Ballinalack Trend". All but one of the major Irish zinc-lead deposits of the Irish Midland Orefield lie along the margins of the Orefield. The Moate target lies mid-way between the former Tynagh Mine, located 50 kilometres to the southwest, and the similar styled Ballinalack deposit, situated 35 kilometres to the northeast. The Tynagh Mine operated successfully from 1965 to 1981 producing 9,000,000 tonnes of ore, from both open pit and underground, at average grades of approximately 7% lead, 5.5% zinc, 0.5% copper and 2.6 ounces of silver per tonne.

Minco's studies of previous drilling have outlined a geological setting that Minco believes mirrors that at the former Tynagh Mine, where zinc-lead mineralization was hosted by breccias developed at the margin between the reef and off-reef limestone facies. The geology at Moate is also comparable to that at the smaller Ballinalack deposit. A ten kilometre long target has been outlined at a depth of 150 metres below surface, with potential for reef hosted zinc-lead mineralisation of Tynagh-type.

Minco's 2016-2017 drill programme at Moate consisted of 13 holes completed between September 2016 and January 2017 for a total of 1299m. Drilling was concentrated in two areas centred on the townlands of Knockanea-Fardrum (Pl 1229) and Tully (Pl 1228). 942m were drilled on Pl 1229 and 357m on Pl 1228. Minco's drilling programme initially focused within PL 1229 on the southwestern three kilometers of the target area, adjacent the ENE striking Moyvoughly Fault where five holes (1229-35 to 1229-39) were drilled for a total of 700 metres. Reef-derived breccias comparable to those at Tynagh were intersected confirming the geological model, and in Holes 1229-38, 39 and 40 the breccias contain widespread trace amounts of disseminated sphalerite.

The 2016-2017 drill programme at Moate has confirmed the geological model and enhanced exploration potential. The geological structure has proven more complicated than expected as the Moyvoughly Fault was not intersected in the