Damian is a Consulting Engineer managing a multidisciplinary engineering team with extensive experience in the gold, copper, lead, zinc, uranium, nickel, lithium, vanadium and iron ore industries with particular emphasis on gold. Experience has been gained in plant operations feasibility studies, detailed design, construction and commissioning, and all unit operations. He is an internationally recognised specialist in Mineral Processing and Hydrometallurgy having worked in North and South America, South East Asia, Africa and Europe and is highly sought after as an International Expert. The last +30 years working as a Principal Consulting Engineer on many resource projects and for mining, banking and engineering companies has provided a broad range of experience. Damian is a Registered Expert Witness and has been engaged on many cases. He is the author of over 220 technical papers on mineral processing, hydrometallurgy and pyrometallurgy.

Keith Barnard has a PhD in Inorganic Chemistry from the University of Melbourne and has worked at CSIRO Mineral Resources for the past 28 years. Whilst initially having a focus on hydrometallurgical solvent extraction research, over the past 10 years his role has been primarily management. He is the Group Leader of Hydrometallurgy, managing Processing staff based at CSIRO Waterford. His role involves overseeing a portfolio of strategic and commercial projects, people and science capability, and the development and implementation of business models that facilitate closer alignment with suitable companies.

Dr. Kevin Heppner is a chemical engineer with nearly 20 years of experience in uranium, power generation, and process simulation. He is an Adjunct Professor at the University of Saskatchewan. Kevin has experience in simulation of hydrometallurgical plants, steam generators, water treatment processes, corrosion mechanisms, solvent extraction, ion exchange, and other processes. He has developed plant models to support production capacity, environmental impact and process modification assessments. Prior to joining Kenwalt, he held various technical roles in the mining and power generation industries, both R&D and operational. Kevin is part of the SysCAD software development team, with a focus on developing and integrating detailed high fidelity chemical thermodynamic calculations in SysCAD. He works with the team marketing SysCAD, providing training, customer support and process simulation services. Kevin has been with the team since 2018.

Former director and adjunct Associate Professor at the Julius Kruttschnitt Mineral Research Centre (JKMRC), Sustainable Minerals Institute (SMI), University of Queensland (UQ) - one of the world’s foremost applied research institutions in minerals engineering. Marcin has spent over 25 years in the minerals industry as an R&D leader and engineering consultant with extensive hands-on, site-based experience. He has worked in optimising mining operations across Australia, Africa, Europe, Asia and the Americas. He holds degrees in Mechatronics Engineering and IT from ANU as well as a PhD in minerals process engineering from the University of Queensland’s JKMRC. Marcin has a broad background in mining technology, minerals processing, energy management, integrated value chain modelling and business development. He has lectured in minerals engineering, project management and leadership, consulted as a mine optimisation specialist, has lead energy trading systems and industrial energy management projects across the UK and Europe, and adapted manufacturing technology to mining. His core areas of expertise lie in mine operations, mineralogy and mining industry energy systems.

As a professor of practice at Curtin University, Tony shares his extensive engineering and management experience in critical minerals with students and researchers. Tony is a fellow and chartered professional member of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (FAusIMM-CP), and a member of Australian Institute of Company Directors (MAICD). Tony is an experienced engineer and executive, who worked in the resources sector for over 30 years, with over 25 professional years of expertise in the full life cycle of mineral processing, extraction, refine and complex chemical projects, from concepts development, test work, engineering design, construction, commissioning, ramp up to steady production operations. Tony is passionate about developing innovative and sustainable solutions for critical minerals and energy challenges and facilitating industry-academia collaboration and knowledge transfer. Tony is also the technical leader, project and operations management of the Cathode Precursor Production Pilot Plant (CPPPP) – successfully delivered AUD 15 million stage 2 program for the Future Battery Industries Cooperative Research Centre -FBICRC, where Tony and his team delivered the development and optimisation of the production of pCAM production of various NCM co-precipitation chemistries for lithium battery. Tony serves as the chairman of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy for Perth Branch, where Tony advocates for the professional development and recognition of the minerals sector in Western Australia.