CSG Talent attend PDAC 2022

CSG Talent’s mining specialists, Elliot Lavallin, Christina Theoklitou-Panagiotou and Jon Taylor recently travelled to Toronto, Canada to attend PDAC 2022 Convention.

PDAC is the World’s Premier Mineral Exploration & Mining Convention. It is the leading convention for people, governments, companies and organisations connected to mineral exploration. This year’s event was the first in person Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) Convention since March 2020 and it welcomed 17,445 investors, analysts, Indigenous leaders, mining executives, geologists, government officials and students after more than two years of uncertainty for major events.

After two years, it was a great opportunity for the team to meet their clients and contacts whilst representing CSG Talent in North America. Though technology allows us to communicate across the globe, as Elliot says, “physical interaction is always better.”

What did the event involve?

“It provided a holistic view of the entire mining industry from exploration, mining, equipment and finance.” - Elliot 

“The event is an exhibition for mine owners to generate more funding and mine suppliers to generate more clients. There were over 3000 stands of companies presenting their offerings. There was also training programmes, presentations, discussions and key note speakers.” - Christina

“There were lots of industry talks and meetings to learn about new projects and companies, it is like the Super Bowl for Mining and it’s a great way to update yourself on what is happening in the industry.” - Jon

What are some of the latest insights with Mining?

Sustainability within Mining:

“Sustainability is definitely a hot topic; many companies are focused on reducing their carbon footprint. I had multiple discussions about what the industry can be doing about going green. Everyone is wanting a quick resolve with immediate results but the reality is more R&D is required with new skills in the market to really generate change. The industry needs to think outside of the box and be open to new ideas from people new in the market. Many companies are starting to look at technology in other industries and how these can be implemented into mining.” – Christina

Mining and Battery materials:

“The battery materials industry is huge and a lot is happening in this space. Several companies are looking into EV materials as an addition to their core mining such as gold and copper but there is a real risk there is not going to be enough raw material to supply the EV demand.” - Elliot

Investments in Mining:

“Investment is slowly trickling back into the industry with the ‘boom’, commodity price hikes and those investors that were looking elsewhere are coming back. There are lots of IPOs with promise and lots of exploration going on, regardless of location. There are also lots of mergers and acquisitions that are making super powers in the gold industry.” - Jon

Diversity in Mining:

“Attending PDAC this year has really demonstrated where the mining industry has come in regards to diversity. There is a lot yet to be achieved however we are moving in the right direction. It is great to see both men and women championing females in the industry which will hopefully encourage generations to come.” - Christina

How beneficial was it to attend PDAC?

“Our role is as much marketing as it is recruiting, PDAC is an essential event for us to attend and I’m glad we were able to go this year. It felt good knowing industry leaders saw us there, knowing that we made the journey from the UK and Australia shows we have a clear intent to go above and beyond to conduct business, which we definitely do. It is easier to create rapport in person than on the phone or words on the screen and it was great to meet with prospective, new and existing clients. I managed to pick up new opportunities, reignite old ones that are now offering and sort out offers for current processes all in 3 – 4 days.”- Jon

“We were able to demonstrate our commitment to supporting clients in North America. PDAC was fantastic for our client and candidate relations as well as keeping up to date with the industry. I created new relationships with multiple clients who have not used CSG Talent before and was able to have longer discussions about our experience and passion for the industry. I was able to meet with candidates we’ve successfully placed and meet their colleagues. There were also multiple discussions about the wider industry issues, I was able to demonstrate my knowledge but also gain further insights into what is happening in the industry.” – Christina

“Clients and candidates were able to see who we are from a personal perspective. It showed our connections within the mining industry that we are willing to travel and make the time to meet with people which we are always happy to do but this gave us the chance to prove it.” - Elliot

Elliot and Christina are back in the UK and Jon is back in our Sydney office and they would like to extend their thanks to everyone who made PDAC a productive and memorable experience. They will be reaching out to those they connected with at the event and welcome discussions with anyone they didn’t get a chance to meet please feel free to contact them directly:

Elliot Lavallin

Christina Theoklitou-Panagiotou 

Jon Taylor