Over 15 years since the lithium boom sparked enthusiasm for electric vehicles, batteries, and an expanding array of critical minerals, a dynamic new trajectory for mineral development has emerged, distinct from ‘traditional’ metals.

This shift brings novel financial, socio-environmental, and regulatory paradigms. Yet, has our understanding of these "new age" minerals aligned with their technical and commercial realities? Are resource evaluation and regulatory frameworks keeping pace with the complexities of these rapidly evolving materials compared to established metals? 

This talk reflects on the evolution of critical mineral development, examining challenges in resource estimation, metallurgy, environmental impacts, geo-politics and financing. By exploring these dimensions, we assess where we stand on the journey toward a more sustainable future—and where gaps remain on this transformative path.

Mark Thompson

Managing Director, Talga Group

Mr Thompson is the founder and Managing Director of ASX-listed Talga Group Ltd. He has over 30 years’ global experience in geoscience industries including 15 years in commercial critical mineral project development and technologies. He is a Member of the Australian Institute of Geoscientists, the Society of Economic Geologists, and former Guest Professor of Mineral Exploration Technology at the University of Technology Chengdu in China.

Hayden Bairstow

Head of Research and Executive Director, Research Division, Argonaut

Hayden is Head of Research and an Executive Director within Argonaut’s Research Division. Hayden is an experienced and influential resources research analysts in Australia. He has extensive experience in the investment banking and stockbroking industry. 

Prior to joining Argonaut, Hayden was the Head of Resources Research at Macquarie Equities where he successfully managed a team of analysts covering nearly 70 leading ASX-listed resources companies during his 10 year tenure.

Adam Myers

Partner, Deal Advisory, BDO

Adam is a Partner at BDO in Deal advisory who specialises in Independent Experts Reports having been involved in over 200 reports relating to Natural Resources transactions. A key element of these reports involves commissioning and reviewing reports from Technical Specialists. Adam also works on IPO’s and provides support as an internal expert to BDO’s audit team as well as for external auditors. Through these roles Adam has exposure to the views of a wide range of stakeholders including regulators.

Ivy Chen

Founder & Principal, GeoReg Mining

Ivy is a mineral resources governance specialist. She is the founder of GeoReg Mining and Compliance, providing advice and support for the public discussion of mineral resources and their prospectivity and value, in line with requirements of the JORC & VALMIN Codes, the corporations’ act and listing rules in Australia, and other jurisdictions.

She is a member of the VALMIN Committee administering Australia’s minerals valuation code, the WA government’s Mining and Petroleum Advisory Committee, the WA Investment Attraction Fund Governance Board and a past-director of the AusIMM, representing mining professionals in Australia and internationally. Ivy was ASIC’s national advisor for geology and mining from 2009-2015. 

Ivy is a director for Horizon Power, WA’s regional electricity company, deputy-chair of Football West, on the board of the Football Futures Foundation (Football West’s charity arm), and a life member of Multicultural Futures, an NFP supporting migrants and refugees.

In 2020 she was one of Women in Mining UK’s 100 Global Inspiration Women in Mining, and a finalist in the 2020 WA CME – Outstanding Women in Resources award. Ivy plays walking football with Subiaco AFC, when she can.  

Nadine Marke

Partner | National Head of Corporate Finance, RSM Australia Pty Ltd

Nadine is the National Head of Corporate Finance at RSM and an experienced valuation practitioner. She has nearly twenty years’ experience within corporate finance, specialising in valuations and litigation support services. Nadine is a member of Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand (CAANZ), a CAANZ Business Valuation Specialist and Forensic Accounting Specialist.

Her experience includes valuations of shares, businesses / projects and intangible assets across a wide variety of industries including Energy & Resources. Nadine’s valuations are used to assist clients negotiating mergers and acquisitions, for financial reporting purposes, bank lending requirements or taxation compliance.

A growing part of Nadine’s practice is working as an Expert Witness in litigation proceedings involving disputes over valuations of businesses, shares or assets. She has appeared in the Supreme Court of WA, Supreme Court of Bermuda, Federal Court, District Court and Family Court to provide both written and oral evidence, as well as Arbitration proceedings.

Nadine is also responsible for the preparation of Independent Expert Reports opining on whether ASX listed and other public transactions are fair and reasonable / in the best interests of shareholders.

Benjamin Fleming

Special Counsel, Sullivan & Cromwell

Ben Fleming is a special counsel in Sullivan & Cromwell’s General Practice group. Ben focuses on international securities offerings and financings, as well as cross-border mergers and acquisitions. Ben has extensive experience in public and private offerings of equity and debt securities, including securities issued in initial public offerings, and is actively involved in advising a range of clients on corporate governance and disclosure matters. Prior to joining S&C’s Melbourne office, Ben worked in the Firm’s New York office.

Edson Ribeiro

Exploração e Projetos Minerais | Exploration and Mineral Projects, Vale S.A.

Edson Ribeiro has 38 years of professional experience in the mining industry, being an expert in resource estimation and economic evaluation of mineral projects.

Graduated in Geology from the University of São Paulo in 1987, with a Master's Degree in Metallogenesis from Unicamp in 1994. He joined Vale in 1993, and since 2016 he has held the position of Director of Exploration and Mineral Projects, with global and multi-commodity operations.

He is a Member of the Brazilian Institute of Corporate Governance (IBGC), of the Australian Institute of Geoscientists (AIG), Fellow of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (AusIMM), Registered Member of the Society for Mining, Metallurgy and Exploration (SME - USA), Qualified Professional Registered with the Brazilian Commission of Resources and Reserves (CBRR).

He was President of the Agency for the Development and Innovation of the Brazilian Mineral Sector (ADIMB) from 2016 to 2020, has been the Brazilian representative at CRIRSCO (Committee for Mineral Reserves International Reporting Standards) since 2015, having held the role of Chairperson in the 2022/2023 biennium.

Garth D. Kirkham, B.Sc, P. GEO., FGC, SEGF, FCIM

Mr. Kirkham has had over 30 years of experience supplying 3D geoscience modelling, geological and geophysical consulting services to the mining, environmental and oil & gas industries. During this time Mr. Kirkham has worked on both underground and open pit projects in a wide range of commodities from precious metals to base metals, strategic metals, industrial minerals, oil sands, potash, phosphate, and coal deposits throughout the world. Mr. Kirkham has also been fortunate to have been an integral part with leading edge organisations such as Geoscience BC along with being allowed to contribute to community and professional organisations as a volunteer. 

He is currently a Chairperson for CRIRSCO (Committee for Mineral Reserves International Reporting Standards). Mr. Kirkham is the Past-President of the Canadian Institute of Mining (CIM). He the co-Chair of the CIM Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves Committee and the Chair of the Geoscientists Canada, Securities Committee.  

ABSTRACT

The estimation of mineral resources requires a series of steps for a Competent Person / Qualified Person (CP or QP) to consider including an understanding of the geology and mineralisation style, the acquisition methods of exploration data (and demonstrating its precision and accuracy), and the geological interpretation of this data. From this, an appropriate exploratory data analysis can aid in determining the most applicable methodology for grade and physical variable estimation, e.g. ordinary kriging, etc, and the validation of the results. This includes conversion of volume, grade and in-situ bulk density to physical tonnes and metal which is often dependent on lithology, weathering/oxidation state and mineralogy of the deposit (e.g. metallurgical studies on recoverability, processing etc). At this stage, a reasonable understanding of the likely mining methods and economic cut-off grade(s) that need be applied will aid need to demonstrate the Mineral Resources have “reasonable prospects for (eventual) economic extraction”.

For market reporting and mine planning, the CP/QP needs to take all the above into consideration and apply an appropriate Mineral Resource classification scheme in order to satisfy the requirements and guidelines of the various CRIRISCO reporting codes (e.g the JORC Code (2012).  With critical minerals there is additional complexities. These include immature or opaque markets, more complex processing routes, and supply-chain dependencies that directly influence the economics and the determination of appropriate cut-off grades. Environmental and social impacts are also more prominent in critical mineral projects, as processing often involves complex chemical circuits, potentially hazardous waste (e.g., radioactive elements in rare earths), and higher water or energy demands. Projects also face heightened scrutiny from local communities and governments due to their strategic importance and potential environmental footprint. These factors require resource estimation to be more closely integrated with ESG considerations such as waste management, carbon intensity, and community engagement, alongside technical feasibility studies.

This presentation highlights these additional challenges through examples from lithium clay deposits in the western United States.

Michael Cunningham

Principal Consultant (Resource Evaluation), SRK Consulting

PhD (Geology), GradCert (Geostatistics), BSc Hons (Geoscience), MAusIMM – Principal Consultant (Geology)

Michael (Mike) Cunningham has over 20 years of experience as a geologist. He specialises in resource estimation, as well as structural geology, geological mapping, 3D modelling of mineral systems, and public reporting. Mike has worked for government and the private sector, including over 17 years as a consultant in Australia and Indonesia. He has managed projects and led multidisciplinary teams covering studies across hard rock seismic, precious metals, base metals, bulk commodities, oil and gas and industrial minerals in Australia, southeast Asia, west and central Africa, North America and South America. He was also a contributor and lead author of the ‘reporting’ chapter of AusIMM’s Mineral Consultant’s Handbook (2nd Edition) and AusIMM training course 'Delivering to Client Expectations'

Teresa Steele-Schober MELP, MEnvMgt, MSAIMM
Principal Consultant (Sustainability), SRK Consulting (UK) Limited

Abstract

Currently excluded from formal reporting requirements, Mineral Waste (MW) volumes usually exceed those of ore and pose significant environmental, social, and financial risks. At best MW is mentioned in sustainability reports as a backward looking volume mined, and may be separated into PAF/NAF categories. By adapting MROR principles to MW, including materiality, transparency and competency, improved MW reporting would aid the reduction of closure liabilities, and unlock opportunities such as reprocessing and circular economy initiatives. The intent of the presentation is not to offer a finalised reporting framework, but to prompt discussion across industry, regulatory, and professional communities. Predictive MW reporting, underpinned by strong data governance and modern technology, may be a necessary step toward more sustainable, accountable, and forward-looking holistic life of mine practices.

Jo Heyes

Head of Resource Stewardship, Quartex

Jo is a mining industry executive with ~30 years’ experience, including 10 years working as an operational mining engineer in manganese, nickel and iron ore mines in Australia. Jo worked in global corporate leadership roles at BHP, principally on integrated closure planning, governance, and leadership of the BHP Resource Engineering Centre of Excellence (mine planning, geotechnical engineering, hydrogeology, tailings and closure).  ​

Known globally for her leadership in mine closure, including Chair roles for standard setting industry groups, such as ICMM,  Jo’s experience can best be summed up as a technical integrator and translator, skills she is putting to good use in her current role with Quartex, as the Head of Resource Stewardship. Passionate about people development, including as BHP Lead - Technical Capability, she is an active mentor and is a Non-Executive Director for AusIMM.

Mark Burnett

Principal Geologist, AMC Consultants

With over 30 years of experience in the mining industry, Mark brings a broad range of expertise across early-stage exploration projects, operational mines, mergers, acquisitions, and asset disposal. He joined AMC in 2018 as a Principal Geologist, with primary responsibilities including Mineral Resource Estimation, technical reporting, and Competent Person sign-off.

He is a member of the Pan European Reserves and Resources Reporting Committee (PERC), representing PERC on both the Committee for Mineral Reserves International Reporting Standards (CRIRSCO) and the International Raw Materials Observatory (INTRAW). Mark is also an active member of three United Nations Resource Management System (UNRMS) working groups.

Steve Hunt FAusIMM, MAIG

Chair, JORC

Steve is a geologist with over 40 years industry experience in Australia, Indonesia and PNG.

His career has included mine geology, resource development, resource evaluation, ore control and ore reserve compliance for a wide range of commodities including Iron, Copper, Gold, Uranium and Titanium. He has worked for juniors, mid-caps and large companies including Rio Tinto and in consulting.  

He is FAusIMM and MAIG and has been a member of JORC since 2005 and Chair since 2014.