CAPABILITY STATEMENT

inceptiongroup.com.au

CONCEPT • PLAN • IMPLEMENT • COMMISSION • OPERATE • OPTIMISE

CONSULTING PROCESS ENGINEERS

MINERALS PROCESSING & HYDROMETALLURGY

OUR COMPANYInception is an engineering consultancy specialising in mining project development and minerals processing.

We leverage our team’s unique skill set and experience to provide process development solutions to the mining and minerals processing industry.

Inception delivers expertise in process development from concept through lab scale, piloting studies, design, plant commissioning and operation for conventional and unconventional mining operations.

WHY USThe Inception team has a strong background in the minerals processing sector with a depth of experience in concentrator and hydrometallurgical plant operation and technical services. Our people have worked in leaching and solvent extraction circuits, and grinding and flotation plants for uranium, copper, nickel, zinc, gold, phosphate, and other base and rare earth metals. We specialise in the integration of unit operations to ensure the best overall outcomes from the flowsheet.

Inception has the advantage of a flexible and personalised client service that enables us to tackle a range of project sizes and timelines. From the largest multi-national mining giant to the single operation company, Inception will work to find a solution to your process engineering project.

OUR EXPERTISEInception personnel provide expertise in:

• Plant commissioning, operations, and process optimisation

• Front end engineering, feasibility, and trade-off studies

• Data evaluation, statistical analysis, and modelling

▸ Metallurgical accounting ▸ Mass and energy balances ▸ Kinetic models

• Metallurgical test work programs ▸ Development and management of

scoping to definitive feasibility studies ▸ Plant survey execution and design

• Plant and process flowsheet, modelling and design

• Pilot and demonstration plant design, management of construction and operation

• Project evaluation and management ▸ Scope, concept design submission

and review of technical drawings ▸ Procurement and commissioning

• Facilitation, audits, and workshops ▸ Risk reviews ▸ HAZID, HAZOP, CHAZOP ▸ Safety in Design, Sustainability in

Design, Value Optimisation

OUR PEOPLE

JAMES DAVIDSON

With 27 years’ experience in uranium and other base metals, from early test work through pilot operations, commercialisation, production, and project management, James has the experience to guide projects from conception through to operation.

James has worked as a site-based metallurgist and operated pilot plant facilities at uranium, copper and antimony production sites in the Northern Territory, Queensland and South Australia as well in the USA and Middle East.

JON WEIR

With 34 years’ experience, Jon holds key expertise in all facets of hydrometallurgical and electrometallurgical plant operation, design and implementation specialising in uranium processing and production. He is experienced in mineralogy interpretation, leaching systems, and solvent extraction design, from initial scoping test work management through to final design and commissioning.

Jon commenced his career with site based operational roles at gold and complex minerals processing plants at all levels of operations from plant operator, to metallurgist, senior metallurgist and technical and operational superintendent. After moving into study and project management, Jon has had multiple engagements at operating sites in contract roles and has managed complex bench and pilot scale testwork programs in close collaboration with plant owners.

OUR RECENT PROJECTS• Technical services and support to study teams of a large

copper-uranium-gold operation

• Re-commissioning, operation and improvement of a complex water treatment facility associated with a uranium processing plant

• Project execution, operation, management, and evaluation of an in-situ leaching trial

• Management of ore characterisation test work programs

• Delivery of statistical reports and unit operation models developed through machine learning methods for metallurgical process

• Process support to debottleneck an antimony roasting plant in the Middle East

• Evaluation and optimisation of an effluent treatment plant for an antimony roaster

• Design and management supervision of pilot plants producing lithium carbonate including flowsheet development, commissioning, and operator training

• Commissioning and operation of demonstration plant producing uranium from phosphate streams at three sites in North America

• Design and management of a bench scale graphite metallurgical testwork program and delivery of a defined flowsheet, process plant design and operating cost data, and coordinated bulk pilot plant trial in China.

• Concept study for recovery of germanium and gallium, comparing flowsheet alternatives and delivering process engineering design and cost estimates.

CONCEPT • PLAN • IMPLEMENT • COMMISSION • OPERATE • OPTIMISE

INCEPTION CONSULTING ENGINEERS PTY LTDABN 65 154 522 942

Registered Address: Level 7, 19 Grenfell Street, Adelaide SA 5000

E: info@inceptiongroup.com.auW: inceptiongroup.com.au

Visit our websitefor further servicesand information

OUR PEOPLE

Read more about the team’s experience and see what we have been working on at www.inceptiongroup.com.au

CONRAD WILKINS

A true project professional, Conrad has on-site and consulting experience, understands innovation, commercial risk, and has a track record in project and design management. With an MBA and over 17 years of experience in managing projects and engineering design Conrad has the ability to lead teams, engage stakeholders, undertake business analysis, commercial decisions, and project activities with confi dence. He can offer an insight on key areas to concentrate on for success.

Conrad has a fi rm grounding in onsite plant metallurgy, undertaking site based roles at hydro and pyro-metallurgical minerals processing plants. These roles included day to day production monitoring, process upset mitigation, continuous process improvement, and plant trials.

BRYN JONES

Bryn is an experienced consultant and uranium professional with over 21 years working in the mining industry. He brings not only a strong and detailed technical background to projects but a key understanding of business fi nance and the operation of publicly listed companies.

Bryn’s site experience spans several pilot and demonstration operations, commercial scale commissioning and operational experience and operations management. His experience with all aspects of the evaluation, design, construction, and operation of mining assets from both a technical and management perspective ensures that every dollar spent on a project adds value.

DR BOB RING

Bob is an experienced process development specialist with more than 40 years of experiencein R&D and consultancy work for clients in Australia and overseas related to the hydrometallurgical processing of ores and the treatment of waste streams arising from processing operations.

Bob was the General Manager of ANSTO Minerals for almost a decade, guiding the growth of the business into a thriving mineral industry consultancy. His early career focused on improving the cost effectiveness of current and future mining operations, which led to the implementation of several innovations by industry — several of which have been patented.

JESS PAGE

Jess is a chartered chemical engineer and mathematician with experience in the minerals processing industry, copper hydrometallurgy and advanced data analytics. Jess has led implementation of metallurgical data consolidation, accounting, and statistical analysis in complex minerals concentration processes. As Manager of Data Analytics, she has developed the advanced data analytics, statistics and machine learning capabilities of Inception and demonstrated the advantages of a data science approach to metallurgical processing.

Jess has valuable site experience in minerals processing operations, including operational metallurgist roles at copper concentrators, pilot uranium extraction plants and project engineering roles onsite at complex copper production facilities.