The critical need for accelerating innovation in the mining sector

The mining sector is facing many challenges in delivering minerals to market given rise in demand, especially for key renewables related mineral supply. Some of the greatest challenges are reflected in the difficulties around getting permits and the social licence to operate especially given climate change and the energy intensity of the mining industry. Accelerating innovation and collaborating together has never been so critical. Open innovation systems are more important than ever to achieve this, which is why MEI has initiated a new conference, Integration, Optimisation & Design of Mineral Processing Circuits (IntegratedMinPro '22).

Australian company Gekko Systems has always had a particular focus on reducing energy intensity and increasing energy efficiency. This has resulted in a focus on new flowsheets, pre-concentration, reducing treatment of gangue/waste, utilising low energy technologies as well as being instrumental in the establishment of not-for-profit CEEC – the Coalition of Eco-Efficient Comminution, an industry advocate for IntegratedMinPro '22, and other MEI Conferences. We are therefore delighted to announce that Elizabeth Lewis-Gray, co-founder and Chair of Gekko Systems and Founder and Patron of CEEC will be presenting a keynote lecture at IntegratedMinPro'22. 

Elizabeth has been a strong advocate for innovation, collaboration and the METS Industry for almost two decades with long serving roles on the Board of Austmine (including Chair), CSIRO’s Mineral Advisory Board and the Federal Government’s Innovation Australia Board. Her own business, Gekko Systems, is a world leader in gold and silver processing technology, consulting, and energy efficient modular processing solutions.

Elizabeth is a Fellow of the Academy of Technology Science  and Engineering and the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (FAusIMM). In addition she is the recipient of an Honorary Doctorate from Federation University for services to mining and a recipient of Australian 100 Women of Influence Awards and the Warren Engineering Innovation Heroes Award (see also posting of 16 March 2015).

In her keynote lecture "The critical need for accelerating innovation in the mining sector" Elizabeth will show how, increasingly, mining companies are looking to reduce their energy footprint and to utilise renewable/low carbon energy sources which will place further pressure on designing low energy and flexible mineral processing facilities.

The capacity to successfully deliver new innovation is still problematic for the mineral processing sector and mining industry which still has many barriers including high capital investment risk, low risk profile of engineers by nature, influence of investors, etc. Many mineral processing flowsheet designs are designed to minimise risk not energy. Timelines/budgets no longer allow for pilot studies. 

The sector must find new pathways to accelerate collaboration, knowledge sharing and innovation and a number of new pathways to market are being trialed and established. However, it is also critical for the innovation to take place across the whole value chain of mining to eliminate waste and maximise efficiency – including accessing and sharing data across the pillars of geology, mining and metallurgy.

The keynote will truly reflect the theme of the conference which invites abstracts on new approaches to mineral processing circuits, whether through design, modelling, optimisation or operation. This includes integration of unit operations (e.g. comminution and flotation), novel flowsheets that incorporate new equipment and new approaches to optimising circuit design.

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