Sustainable Mining: Balancing Risk and Innovation

Q1. Could you start by giving us a brief overview of your professional background, particularly focusing on your expertise in the industry?

I am a metallurgical and mining engineer holding a Ph.D. in Mining Engineering (Major in Mineral Processing) from Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario. I also obtained an MBA from the University of New Brunswick. I have been working in the mining industry for 35 years, with much of that time spent in operations, and most recently moving into consulting. I started my career working in Canada for a small gold mine, then went to Barrick Gold as an autoclave metallurgist. This was followed by a significant period working in West Africa, eventually ending up with Ashanti Goldfields. I transitioned into technology development for refractory gold treatment and eventually to copper heap leaching, with a focus on bioleaching. Currently, as a consultant, I have multiple projects at various stages of design, including lithium, gold, copper, and cobalt.

Q2. How are changing investor expectations around sustainability and ESG influencing how mining feasibility studies or resource planning are conducted?

Over the last 10 years, we have witnessed an increased focus on the ESG components in many of our studies, particularly on…