Principal Engineer, Metallurgy
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Key skills for this role
About the Role
Job Purpose: The Principal Metallurgist is the technical authority (SME) for metallurgy aspect, responsible for leading metallurgical inputs across the full project lifecycle, f.
Key Skills for This Role
Responsibilities
- Provide metallurgical input into project screening, concept evaluation, and business case development
- Identify key metallurgical risks, opportunities, and trade offs to support decision making
- Define initial process options, conceptual flowsheets, recovery assumptions, and mass balances during scoping stage
- Lead advanced laboratory testing and variability analysis during PFS
- Develop preliminary process design criteria, base flowsheets, mass balances, and support trade off studies
- Direct pilot scale and variability test work programs during FS/BFS
- Approve final flowsheets and design basis, ensuring alignment with investment and financing requirements
- Provide inputs to capital and operating cost estimates and define BFS level design parameters
- Design and oversee end to end metallurgical test work strategy
- Interpret and validate metallurgical results for integration into flowsheet and process development
- Coach and mentor metallurgical personnel
- Ensure compliance with company and site policies, standards, and procedures
Requirements
- Bachelor's degree in metallurgical, minerals, or chemical engineering
- Minimum 20 years of experience in metallurgical operations, engineering, and laboratory environment related to gold and base metal extraction
- Project management experience
- Knowledge of life of mine planning including budgeting and metal planning
- Knowledge of Metallurgical Accounting Standard
- Experience with plant control systems and data historian trends
- Ability to present to and collaborate with corporate executives and site Senior Leadership Team
- Strong computer skills and proficiency in Microsoft Office
- Knowledge in Safety requirements
- Ability to work in a multi cultural environment
Full Job Posting
Job Purpose
- The Principal Metallurgist is the technical authority (SME) for metallurgy aspect, responsible for leading metallurgical inputs across the full project lifecycle, from early business case evaluation through feasibility study (FS) and into execution readiness.
Key Accountabilities
- Provide metallurgical input into project screening, concept evaluation, and business case development, including value drivers, recovery assumptions, process routes, and economic model inputs (recovery, throughput, CAPEX/OPEX).
- Identify key metallurgical risks, opportunities, and trade offs to support informed decision making.
- Define initial process options, conceptual flowsheets, recovery assumptions, and mass balances during scoping stage, while overseeing preliminary metallurgical testwork programs and developing the initial risk register.
- Lead advanced laboratory testing and variability analysis during PFS, including defining grind size, comminution parameters, and recovery processes (flotation, leaching, gravity).
- Develop preliminary process design criteria, base flowsheets, mass balances, and support trade off studies and process optimization.
- Direct pilot scale and variability test work programs during FS/BFS and finalize process design criteria, equipment sizing, specifications, water and metallurgical balances.
- Approve final flowsheets and design basis, ensuring alignment with investment and financing requirements.
- Provide inputs to capital and operating cost estimates and define BFS level design parameters and risk mitigation measures.
- Design and oversee end to end metallurgical test work strategy, including sample selection, compositing, laboratory and pilot programs.
- Ensure data quality, QA/QC, traceability, and alignment of test work with project decision gates.
- Interpret and validate metallurgical results for integration into flowsheet and process development.
- Support and guide processing methodologies including refractory, CIL, flotation, and heap leach, while leading investigations to improve efficiency and align with organizational strategy.
Minimum Qualifications, Experience and Competencies
- Bachelor's degree in metallurgical, Minerals/Chemical Engineering.
- Project management experience.
- Minimum 20 years of experience in metallurgical operations, engineering, and laboratory environment related to gold and base metal extraction processes.
- Generic Maaden behavioral competencies required: Leadership, Achievement Drive, Communication, Teamwork & collaboration, Analytical thinking.
Skills
- As technical services functional leader, Principal Engineer, Metallurgy position shall be the champion of change for improvement in all aspects of metal processing but not limited to existing operation and growth study.
- This position is responsible to deliver in quality and timely manner resources model with consultation with other functional within technical services, Operational leadership and Corporate.
- Knowledge of life of mine planning including budgeting and metal planning.
- Knowledge of Metallurgical Accounting Standard.
- Experience with plant control systems and use of data historian trends for operating and reporting.
- Ability to present to and collaborate with corporate executives and the site Senior Leadership Team required.
- Strong computer skills and proficiency in Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, and Access) required.
- Knowledge in Safety requirements.
- Ability to work in a multi cultural environment.
- Principal Engineer, Metallurgy role needs to communicate frequently within all internal and external stakeholders for all matters related to Metallurgy and Process Engineering.
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