The Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada’s (PDAC) Convention holds a prominent position within the mineral exploration and mining industry. This highly anticipated annual event was honored with the prestigious “Floor13 Business Event Award” at the 2022 Canadian Tourism Awards, solidifying its well-deserved reputation as a paramount gathering in the industry.
Once again, eResearch returns this year as a PDAC 2023 media partner.
The annual conference, which brings together mining executives, geologists, analysts, investors, students, and government officials, plans to offer hundreds of hours and more than 100 sessions of mining content.
Similar to previous years, the online event will be divided into different programs including Capital Markets, Corporate Presentations, Indigenous, Industry Presentations Investor Exchange, Short Courses, Student, Sustainability, Technical, and Keynote. The Keynote Speakers are overviewed below.
Keynote Speakers
The Keynote Program encompasses four themes: Commodities, Mineral Outlook, Technology, and New Discoveries. The objective is to inspire and educate participants through discussions on new concepts and the exploration and development challenges faced in the mineral industry in 2023. Speakers will share insights and engage in conversations around these topics, providing valuable information and fostering a deeper understanding among attendees.
1. Commodities Keynote
Topic: All metals are becoming critical
Sunday, March 5, 2023
Ken Hoffman, Head of Battery Raw Materials, McKinsey & Company
Ken Hoffman assumes a pivotal role as the leader of McKinsey & Company’s EV battery raw materials team. Over six years, he has undertaken an extensive examination of the global EV value chain, encompassing critical areas such as mining, refining, recycling, and emerging battery technologies. Furthermore, Ken holds the position of overseeing the MineSpans research division, focusing on comprehensive research on all metals. Before joining McKinsey, Ken amassed a 25-year tenure as an analyst, portfolio manager, and director of research, with a primary focus on commodity markets.
Keynote overview:
- The landscape of metals availability is entering a critical phase, driven by factors such as expanding consumption, dwindling reserves, declining ore grades, emerging industrial applications, permitting delays, limited capital, unsatisfactory shareholder returns, and a noticeable trend toward deglobalization.
- As we navigate this juncture, the convergence of innovative technologies and the pursuit of lower emissions will significantly influence the trajectory of future mining endeavors.
- While financing and development pose formidable challenges, promising solutions are on the horizon, bringing hope for a way forward.
2. Mineral Outlook Keynote
Topic: Mining for the Future
Monday, March 6, 2023
Sinead Kaufman, Chief Executive, Rio Tinto Minerals
Sinead, in her capacity as Chief Executive, leads Rio Tinto’s minerals portfolio encompassing a diverse range of global businesses. These include iron ore pellets and concentrate, titanium dioxide, diamonds, and borates, with operations spanning across Canada, Madagascar, South Africa, and the United States.
A significant focus of the minerals portfolio lies in meeting the growing demand for critical minerals. Under Sinead’s guidance, Rio Tinto successfully established a battery materials business, marked by notable projects such as the Rincon lithium project in Argentina, the Jadar lithium project in Serbia, and various technology partnerships.
Having joined Rio Tinto as a geologist in 1997, she has held senior positions in the mining of copper, aluminum, bauxite, diamonds, coal, salt, uranium, and iron ore, gaining insights from both underground and open pit mining environments.
Keynote overview:
- A comprehensive overview of the industry’s perspective on critical minerals, with a particular emphasis on the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead for the mining sector amidst the transition towards a low-carbon economy.
3. Technology Keynote
Topic: Technology and the Future of Mineral Exploration
Tuesday, March 7, 2023
Richard Inglis, Chief Geologist, Newmont Corporation
Richard Inglis, as Newmont’s Chief Geoscientist, boasts a track record of over 30 years, marked by extensive exploration and mining experience across various regions worldwide.
Throughout his career, Richard has garnered recognition for his proficiency in geological mapping, mineral exploration, and geological modeling. Fueled by a deep passion for technology, continuous learning, and an unwavering commitment to making a meaningful impact, Richard consistently strives to expand the horizons of our knowledge about the Earth and its invaluable resources.
Keynote overview:
- The realm of mineral exploration is undergoing a remarkable transformation due to recent technological advancements, and this rapid pace of change exhibits no signs of deceleration.
- In this presentation, he delves into the future to explore how exploration geologists can leverage technology to unlock the potential for groundbreaking discoveries in the next era.
- By envisioning the possibilities, he aims to uncover how these technological innovations can revolutionize the field and shape the trajectory of future mineral exploration endeavors.
4. New Discoveries Keynote
Topic: Julimar project: The right metals at the right time in Western Australia
Wednesday, March 8, 2023
Alex Dorsch & Kevin Frost, Chalice Mining, Perth, Australia
Chalice Mining is the PDAC 2023 winner of the Thayer Lindsley Award.
Keynote overview:
- Chalice Mining is an explorer and developer with a significant greenfield discovery of platinum group elements (PGE), nickel, copper, cobalt, and gold at the Julimar project in Western Australia. This discovery led Chalice Mining to be honored with the Thayer Lindsley Award.
- At the Julimar Project, Chalice has successfully defined a Tier 1 scale mineral resource at the Gonneville magmatic sulphide deposit, marking the project’s initial discovery. The Gonneville resource, recently updated in July 2022, hosts 11 million ounces of palladium-platinum and gold, 560,000 tonnes of nickel, 360,000 tonnes of copper, and 54,000 tonnes of cobalt. This positions it as one of the largest undeveloped Ni-Cu-PGE deposits on a global scale. The resource forms a solid foundation for an exceptional green metals project, as these metals play a critical role in enabling de-carbonization efforts.
- Covering the extensive Julimar intrusive complex, the Julimar Project, entirely owned by Chalice, spans over 30 kilometers of unexplored territory. Notably, the Gonneville resource represents just a small portion of this complex, covering approximately 2 kilometers.
- The project benefits from a favorable location, situated around 70 kilometers northeast of Perth, with excellent access to road, rail, port, and high-voltage power infrastructure.
- Development studies for the project are progressing, and a conceptual processing flowsheet has been outlined to produce a Cu-PGE-Au concentrate, as well as a Ni-Co mixed-hydroxide precipitate (MHP) for sale to battery pCAM customers.
- The Julimar discovery has delineated the new West Yilgarn Ni-Cu-PGE province in Western Australia, an extensively unexplored mineral province that extends for approximately 1,200 kilometers along the western margin of the Yilgarn Craton. Chalice holds a remarkable land position of over 8,000 square kilometers in this exciting new region, leveraging its advantageous first-mover position. The West Yilgarn is now recognized as one of the most promising nickel sulphide provinces globally.
With attendees from over 120 countries, there will sure to be innovative and exciting opportunities across both the North and South Building of the MTCC. So don’t miss the event-of-choice for the world’s mineral industry, taking place from March 5-8, 2023. For updates and more information on #PDAC2023 head to https://www.pdac.ca/convention.
