SPEAKERS

Alan R Butcher BSc PhD FGS is a geologist with a specialization in rocks of commercial importance. He started off as an igneous petrologist but his experience quickly grew to include geochronology, applied mineralogy, ore deposit geology, forensic geoscience, and reservoir characterization. Alan has also worked on lunar and Martian rocks with NASA.
Alan is best known for his visionary development and enthusiastic evangelism of new and emerging capabilities and business opportunities within the field of Automated Mineralogy & Petrology (particularly in the areas of process mineralogy, reservoir petrography, and environmental mineralogy), as well as Digital Rock Analysis (involving the integration of 2D, 3D and 4D imaging and analysis of rocks).
He is currently Professor of Geomaterials & Applied Mineralogy at the Geological Survey of Finland.

Chris is a Solution Partner and Head of MineLens and MineSpans with McKinsey & Company in New York office.  Chris is a proven business builder with significant management, entrepreneurial, financial and consulting experience.

Main focus

• Entrepreneurship, business creation and team building
• Extraction of insight from information – big data, advanced analytics
• Finance, mergers & acquisitions, private equity

Dr. Ali Soofastaei, Vale

Ali Soofastaei is a Data Scientist at Vale and also a Professional Research Fellow at the University of Queensland (UQ) Australia. Vale is a Brazilian multinational corporation engaged in metals and mining and one of the largest logistics operators in Brazil. Vale is the most significant producer of iron ore and nickel in the world.

Dr Soofastaei uses new models based on Artificial Intelligence (AI) methods to increase productivity, energy efficiency and reduce the total costs of mining operations. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering and has an in-depth understanding of Energy Management (EM) and Equipment Maintenance Solutions (EMS). The extensive research he conducted on AI and Value Engineering (VE) methods while completing his Master of Engineering and PhD also led him to acquire considerable expertise in EM and EMS in mining engineering.

​In the past 14 years, Dr Soofastaei has conducted a variety of research studies in academic and industrial environments. He has acquired an in-depth knowledge of Energy Efficiency Opportunities (EEO), AI, VE and Advanced Data Analysis (ADA).

​Dr Soofastaei has been working in the oil, gas and mining industries and he has academic experience as an assistant professor. He has been in School of Mechanical and Mining Engineering at UQ since 2012 involved in many research and industrial projects, and he has been a member of the supervisory team for PhD and Master Students.

Dr Soofastaei has completed many research projects and published their results in a lot of journal and conference papers. He also has developed few patents and five software packages.

More information is available at www.soofastaei.net

Joe Cucuzza is the Managing Director of AMIRA International. Experienced Managing Director with a demonstrated history of working in the mining & metals industry. Skilled in facilitating collaboration, and delivering results. Joe Cucuzza is successful in building local and global multi-company, multi-institution collaborative programs that address complex problems. Joe Cucuzza has deep knowledge in innovation and collaboration. Joe Cucuzza is sensitive to cultural differences and with an extensive global network in minerals industry and research community. Also, Joe Cucuzza has strong business development professional with a Master of Business (Enterprise Innovation) focused in Business & Entrepreneurship from Swinburne University of Technology. Graduate of the AICD.

Leonardo Feltrin, Mineral Exploration Research Centre

Dr. Feltrin has recently joined HES at Laurentian University (January 2018) as Associate Professor of Earth Systems Modelling. His research considers the use of computational geoscience, AI and modern data analytics to increase the chance of discovery of ore deposits and improve the understanding of factors controlling mineral resources location in the Earth’s crust. Applied research focuses on GIS-based mineral prospectivity mapping, data analytics, robotics and Earth systems 3D reconstructions and simulations. Starting in Winter 2018, he will be teaching the course GEOL 3056 titled Computer Applications in the Earth Sciences.

Phillips S. Baker, Jr., President and CEO

Phillips S. Baker, Jr., a director since 2001, has been our Chief Executive Officer since May 2003 and has served as our President since November 2001. He served as Hecla’s Chief Financial Officer from May 2001 to June 2003; Chief Operating Officer from November 2001 to May 2003; and Vice President from May 2001 to November 2001. He has also served as a Director of QEP Resources, Inc. (a leading independent natural gas and oil exploration and production company), since May 2010, as well as serving as a Director for Questar Corporation (a Western U.S. natural gas-focused exploration and production, interstate pipeline and local distribution company) from February 2004 through June 2010.

Phillips S. Baker, Jr., a director since 2001, has been our Chief Executive Officer since May 2003 and has served as our President since November 2001. He served as Hecla’s Chief Financial Officer from May 2001 to June 2003; Chief Operating Officer from November 2001 to May 2003; and Vice President from May 2001 to November 2001. He has also served as a Director of QEP Resources, Inc. (a leading independent natural gas and oil exploration and production company), since May 2010, as well as serving as a Director for Questar Corporation (a Western U.S. natural gas-focused exploration and production, interstate pipeline and local distribution company) from February 2004 through June 2010.

Stephen Letwin, President and Chief Executive Officer, IAMGOLD

Steve Letwin was appointed President and Chief Executive Officer of IAMGOLD on November 1, 2010. He has been a member of the Board of Directors since joining the Company.

Specializing in corporate finance, operational management, and merger and acquisitions, Steve brings over 30 years of experience from the highly-competitive resource sector. Steve actively leads his executive management teams with a clear and pragmatic approach to driving business results, creating shareholder value, and achieving sustainable growth.

Prior to joining IAMGOLD, Steve was based in Houston, Texas, where he was the Executive Vice President, Gas Transportation & International, with Enbridge Inc. Steve was responsible for Enbridge’s natural gas operations, including overall responsibility for Enbridge Energy Partners, as the partnership’s Managing Director. In 1999, he joined Enbridge as President and Chief Operating Officer, Energy Services, based in Toronto, Canada.

Before joining Enbridge, Steve served as President & Chief Operating Officer of TransCanada Energy and was Chief Financial Officer, TransCanada Pipelines Limited, Numac (Westcoast Energy), and Encor Energy. Mr. Letwin holds an MBA from the University of Windsor, is a Certified General Accountant, a graduate of McMaster University (B.Sc., Honors), and a graduate of the Harvard Advanced Management Program.

Throughout his career, Steve has actively demonstrated his commitment to voluntary leadership. His most recent community affiliations have included Director, Corporate Campaign Committee of Texas Children’s Hospital; Patron, UNICEF Alberta, Canada; and Director, YMCA Calgary, Canada. For his commitment to the community, Steve was awarded the 2006 Alberta Centennial Medal.

Thomas Gaisecker finished his studies with master degree in geography with focus on geoinformatics at the University of Salzburg. From 1995 to 2003 he was CEO of ICRA and from 2000 to 2003 also partner of NextGIS.

Since 2003 he is with RIEGL Laser Measurement Systems, now as Senior Manager International Sales (responsible for sales, training and support working with RIEGL distribution partners worldwide) and as Mining & Monitoring Business Division Manager.

He is an expert for Terrestrial Laser Scanning / UAS-based laser scanning and applications in mining.