Industry awards

Trigg took home this award for its Lake Throssell greenfields discovery in WA. Trigg founder, managing director and chief executive officer Keren Paterson said the company was “incredibly honoured” to receive the award.

“We would like to acknowledge the Traditional Owners, the Ngaanyatjarra Lands People, on whose traditional lands this discovery was made and their role in this accomplishment, the technical and field crews who have worked tirelessly to make this discovery and the award sponsor Bonfiglioli,” Paterson said

Category sponsored by Bonfiglioli.

EXCELLENCE IN ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT & SUSTAINABILITY

This award recognises a mine, company or project that has developed or carried out an innovative, environmentally focused program to protect, preserve and/or rehabilitate the natural environment and improve sustainability.

IGO took home this year’s award.

“We were recognised as being an industry leader for our Internal Carbon Price and Decarbonisation Fund, which is an innovative and environmentally focused initiative which improves sustainability and accelerates decarbonisation,” the company said following the awards.

“This is an important step towards delivering on our commitment to be carbon-neutral across our direct operations by 2035.”

Category sponsored by Metso Outotec.

Excellence In Iiot Application

The Excellence in IIoT (industrial internet of things) Application award seeks to recognise an outstanding implementation of IIoT that enhances mining and mineral processing operations.

And the Flexco Elevate by Flexco Australia was this year’s worthy winner.

This belt cleaning monitoring system allows mining operations to remotely gather critical data and perform real-time analysis to boost belt conveyor efficiency.

Flexco Elevate is a wireless platform that transfers data via cloud technology and provides continuous and automated collection and monitoring of data. This reduces the need for on-site inspections, including those that could compromise employee safety.

Category sponsored by ifm.

Indigenous And Community Engagement Award

Recognising collaboration between Aboriginal-owned businesses and mining and minerals processing companies operating within Australia, this award was presented to Atlas Iron for its major mining contract with East West Pilbara (EWP).

The contract was the first of its kind to be awarded on traditional land and is unique in that it is not a provision of a particular narrow service or activity, but rather all-encompassing.

EWP managing director Troy Eaton said the contract was a watershed moment.

“This will be the first Indigenous business in the Pilbara to be awarded such a valuable contract to conduct these specific mining services on their own native title lands,” Eaton said.

“I know my grandfather and Nyamal man Ernest Mitchell would be so proud of what we have achieved together. He has always believed that mining could benefit his people and first started looking for commercial opportunities in the 1960s.”

Category sponsored by Schenck Process.

Mine Project Success Of The Year

Another new award, this recognises a significant engineering and/or contract mining project that has been undertaken on a mine site.

Roy Hill won for its Wet High Intensity Magnetic Separator WHIMS plant Expansion Project.

The pioneering of the WHIMS plant in December 2019 allowed capture of high-grade ultrafine iron ore units that would otherwise have been waste.

When the original WHIMS initially processed ore in December 2019, Roy Hill was the first Australian iron ore company to use magnetic separation in a hematite mine at that size and scale, reducing waste and increasing production by approximately 4mtpa.

Category sponsored by Epiroc.

Project Lead Of The Year

The making of great mines starts behind the scenes, and the Project Lead of the Year award seeks to recognise those individuals who work to lead site projects to a successful outcome.

The deserving winner for 2022 was Stacey Brown, general manager –projects at Atlas Iron.

Brown is responsible for a pipeline of new projects, including two new major mines, the Sanjiv Ridge and Miralga hematite iron ore mines, both of which celebrated first ore during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Brown oversees all stages of project development at Atlas, from pre-feasibility to site construction, and draws on her extensive experience in strategic development, corporate leadership and communications to navigate these projects.

Category sponsored by Altra Motion.

Australian Mine Of The Year

The Australian Mine of the Year recognises a mine site that is not only exceptionally wellperforming, but has also reached its production goals, implemented commendable safety controls, environmental and sustainability programs, and/or has shown its capacity to innovate in order to drive the industry ahead.

The award is imparted to the winner of one of the other categories, and after already taking home the 2022 Outstanding Mine Performance Award, Kestrel Coal Resources was a worthy recipient.

Kestrel underground operations manager Daniel Proffitt hailed the company’s “special year”.

“With purposeful investment into our safety and culture, our values drive high performance and mateship. In 2022, we have upheld our commitment to developing our people and our frontline leaders, who are at the core of our success,” Proffitt said.

Category sponsored by National Group.

Lifetime Achievement Award

Recognising an individual who has contributed to the Australian mining and mineral processing industries throughout their life, this is the most prestigious individual recognition award of the night.

The 2022 award was presented posthumously to Ron Sayers, who died last year. Sayers founded mining services company Ausdrill in 1987, growing his business into a billiondollar ASX200 global mining services company, now the Perenti Group.

Accepting the award, nephew Mark Swiderski said Sayers was passionate about his employees and fostering an outstanding workplace culture.

“Ron perfected the art of the deal, applying principles in work as he did in life,” he said. “He respected everyone, he acknowledged others who were experts in their respective fields.”

Category sponsored by Liebherr.