Highlands Geoscience maintains relationships with a pool of experienced, talented advisors and associates who contribute to projects as appropriate. We assemble project teams from these and other consultants for individual projects, keeping your costs down and maintaining a tight focus on your project needs. In addition to the individuals and companies below, we work with top industry firms such as SRK Consulting, Wardrop Engineering, McClelland Labs, Kappes Cassiday and Associates, and Metals Economics Group.
Loong Keat is an accomplished mining engineer, manager, and mining executive. He worked for 14 years in the tin-mining industry in Malaysia before having a successful career in management and executive positions for Rio Tinto from 1979 to 2001. As General Manager for Malaysia, he was responsible for Rio Tinto's full range of interests in the country. He served for three years as General Manager to the Mining Division of Bougainville Copper in Papua New Guinea, one of the world's largest copper mines, and five years as General Manager for Mt. Tom Price Operations in Australia, one of the world's largest iron mines. Loong Keat then became Executive General Manager of Rio Tinto Asia, and Managing Director/Chief Representative of the Rio Tinto Beijing Office in China. Loong Keat holds a Mining Engineering Associateship of the Camborne School of Mines, Cornwall, England. He is a Fellow of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy/Chartered Professional Management (FAusIMM, CPMan).
Jack's mining engineering career spans over 50 years and the full range of positions, from laborer to executive vice president. He has evaluated, designed, and constructed numerous new mining projects for various employers, and is especially experienced in underground mining. Jack progressed from a Mine Foreman of the Yauricocha and Cerro de Pasco mines in Peru to General Mine Foreman of the Yauricocha Mine, spent 14 years at the Tayoltita Mine in Mexico progressing from Foreman to Assistant General Manager, and for 11 years was Assistant General Manager at the Homestake Mine in Lead, South Dakota. Jack has also served in management and executive positions for Cyprus Amax Minerals, Knight Pièsold, Neil and Associates Consultants, and Consolidated Nevada Goldfields, where he was Senior Vice President of Operations. Jack is now an independent mining consultant with such clients as Pincock Allen & Holt and Anderson Schwab. Jack is a 1960 Engineer of Mines graduate from the Colorado School of Mines. He has published numerous articles on mining engineering and is a member of the Society for Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration (SME of AIME).
Court is a project management consultant providing services for a wide range of mining and engineering projects. Court's services include mine management; mineral project acquisition; engineering, construction, and commissioning for earthworks, heavy civil construction, and infrastructure projects; contract management; preconstruction management and estimates; environmental investigations; and management of design engineering. Court is especially good at navigating challenging management relationships. During 2009-2010 he displayed this skill as General Manager of the Xiaonanshan Mine in eastern China where he managed a 360,000 tonne per annum open-pit iron ore mine; developed the company's financing proforma for expanding to triple production, working with international bankers in Hong Kong; and worked with local mine regulatory authorities in China. Court has a BSc and BASc degrees in geophysics and civil engineering from the University of British Columbia, and is a member of the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of B.C. He is a graduate of the prestigious London Business School, England, where he earned a Sloan Fellowship in Business.
Mark is a highly regarded ore deposits researcher, professor, and advisor to mining companies worldwide. His research focuses largely on the geochemical processes at work in the rock-fluid-gas interactions that create mineral deposits. Mark's knowledge of all kinds of ore deposits is comprehensive, with a particular focus on epithermal gold-silver, porphyry copper-molybdenum, and volcanogenic massive sulfide base-metal deposits. This knowledge is based on a unique combination of careful field observation and theoretical modeling: Mark has developed computer models that numerically simulate ore-forming processes and give insight into how veins and alteration form and how metals are deposited. These insights are directly applicable to minerals exploration, and major mining companies have sought Mark's understanding of ore-forming processes. He also investigates the geochemistry of geothermal systems. Mark has been a professor at the University of Oregon since 1979. He has a BA in geology from Carleton College and MS and PhD degrees from the University of California at Berkeley. He is recipient of two of the Society of Economic Geologists' highest awards, the Brian J. Skinner Award (for outstanding papers published in Economic Geology, the top ore deposits research journal) and the Lindgren Award (for young scientists making outstanding contributions to economic geology).
Anita is an internationally recognized expert in putting sustainability into action for businesses, having worked to help organizations in energy and mining design, develop, and implement sustainable practices for over 25 years. She is Founder and President of the Catalyst Institute, which serves clients to create and develop sustainability plans, reduce carbon footprint, engage with stakeholders, and reduce cost and risk. Anita has led multiple sustainability efforts for Rio Tinto Alcan, including serving on the global sustainability advisory team, developing sustainability tactics for the company's individual sites and global operations, creating an operations manual for stakeholder engagement, and creating development strategies for securing license to operate in sensitive areas. Together with the Rocky Mountain Institute, she designed and implemented a sustainable development program for Anglo American's South African enterprises. Anita is a board advisor on sustainability to Anglo American, Rio Tinto Alcan, Shell International, and BC Hydro. She spent 17 years working at Royal Dutch Shell and its subsidiaries, where she advised the CEO and senior leadership on designing and implementing programs on climate change, sustainability public policy, stakeholder engagement, corporate social responsibility, key performance indicators, and carbon valuation. She holds BS degrees in physics and environmental science from Macalester College and Northland College. Anita lectures widely as a keynote speaker and as Lecturer at University of California, Santa Barbara, and Beijing University, where she advised the Chinese Olympic design team on sustainability issues.
Bensing and Associates is a professional project and land management firm providing land acquisition, project management, and business development expertise in the U.S. and abroad. Jerry Bensing, principal and owner, has over 30 years of management experience, including positions as Director of International Land and Governmental Relations for Echo Bay Mines and Director of Land Management and Government Affairs for Cyprus Amax Minerals. Bensing and Associates provides project planning and management, permitting, acquisition negotiation, surface and mineral title investigations, and property administrative management for protection of land assets for natural resource firms and major utility companies. The company represents numerous clients in precious metals and minerals, rare earth minerals, base metals, coal, uranium and construction materials through initial title research, negotiation and acquisition of properties, permitting, and land administration.