The Gold Industry Group congratulated Duncan Burke-Shyne on receiving the IMDEX Exploration Geologist of the Year award, and then discussed his experiences working at Gold Road Resources.
Why did you join the industry?
My dad was a mining engineer when I was younger, and I always enjoyed living in and experiencing unusual places like Papua New Guinea and smaller mining towns in Queensland. They always had a different and closer sense of community than urban centres. I enjoy sciences like physics and chemistry so working in industry as a geologist is an excellent way to be employed as a scientist, apply scientific principles related to physics, chemistry and geology and also have an enjoyable work-life balance through the fly-in-fly-out (FIFO) style of work.
Tell us about Gold Road Resources
Gold Road has made the biggest gold discovery in Australia this decade at the Gruyere gold mine. The Yamarna greenstone belt is an underexplored and newly discovered greenstone belt that I am sure will host significantly more gold. Now Gold Road has cash flow from its newly operating gold mine it is looking to fund a strong exploration program to unlock new discoveries and I want to be part of that.
Congratulations on your award. What drives you in your role?
I thoroughly enjoy learning and trying to answer questions that are difficult. Greenfields gold exploration is an excellent way to be employed as a scientist since the goal is to discover something that no one else has. Being surrounded by others who are inquisitive, technically knowledgeable and driven provides an excellent environment to immerse myself in to improve. I also enjoy the different experiences and work challenges you encounter when in the bush away from a normal lifestyle. Little things we rely on so readily such as Google maps or Bunnings aren’t available, so you become creative, build trust and relationships with your colleagues. Not to be overlooked is that with an 8-6 FIFO role you effectively have almost half the year at home, which gives you so much time to pursue interests outside of work and means you are far more energised to spend quality time with your partner.
What does your day-to-day work involve and what is your favourite part of your current role?
My day to day work can vary. Common tasks include logging of chips or diamond drill core, liaising with our drilling partners, field and geology teams. We regularly review and interpret the generated data from drill programs and geophysical remote sensing to create geological plan maps, vertical sections, geological logging and lithogeochemical classification. From these datasets we take the learnings from a completed program to inform what we do next. It is application of the scientific method with the goal of making an economic discovery of gold. We take the known information, formulate questions such as ‘where is the gold and why would it be there?’, decide how to test these questions and execute the plan. Once complete, through peer review, we decide what drives the next round of programs to try and make a major discovery. My favourite part of my role is the economic focus to science and the geochemical analysis aspect of my role and luckily, I have highly competent people within the organisation who share the drive and love of science to mentor and assist me in these areas.
What has been your biggest learning curve or challenge so far?
Before I was a geologist, I completed an apprenticeship as a boilermaker so I came to the industry already having been exposed to long hours and hot conditions which may challenge some. I am quite detail oriented which was encouraged when I completed my MSc at QUT in Brisbane, however there are definite time and financial pressures which drive an exploration company. I have had to adjust to understanding that whilst having the details aren’t bad, you don’t always need to know everything in absolute finite points, as balancing time management and prioritisation is critical. Gold Road is a publicly listed mid-tier gold mining company and as such there is a responsibility and obligation to provide shareholders with a return on their investment in a timely fashion. We are looking to make another major discovery here and as such we need to prioritise work which is going to contribute directly to discoveries. I’ve become significantly better at my personal time management and effectively focusing my priorities. I’m only 3 years into my career and there is plenty to learn, so I anticipate and welcome challenges and learning curves in the future – it’s what makes it interesting.
Tell us about the graduate program at Gold Road.
The graduate program at Gold Road is excellent. They encourage a balance of exposure, so you spend time with the field staff, geology team and drillers to have a basic understanding of the challenges faced by each. This hands-on approach ensures you retain knowledge very well and helps build relationships across the whole team rather than being pigeonholed. As part of the program you are involved in a variety of tasks from sampling and site preparation, to logistics and planning, logging of chips and drill core, liaising with drillers and other contract partners, managing remote camps, contributing to health, safety and environment, improving geological processes, attending industry conferences, geological interpretation and planning of drill programs. From day one the team here has been hugely supportive, and I have been given a degree of trust to perform which I hadn’t experienced elsewhere. It is an excellent program which is continuing to develop. After completing, there is always the possibility of a secondment to the Gruyere gold mine to gain operational experience to complement the exploration knowledge and skills.
What does the future hold for you?
Gold Road showed interest and trust in me when it was very difficult finding work after completing my MSc. They provide really encouraging freedom and responsibility in my role, great mentoring and training and I am surrounded by incredibly enthusiastic and driven people who want to make another major discovery. In 2019 I designed a drill program with the team which generated some really positive results (see the Yamarna Exploration Update) and the excitement of getting those gold results from a product of my work is like nothing else I know. I want to be able to say I contributed to discovering an economic deposit, so the future for me is assisting to find the next big one.
What advice would you give to those considering studying a mining-related discipline?
Study hard, there are times as an undergraduate where you may be thinking ‘I’ll never need this’ but it is surprising how often that foundational knowledge is useful. I’m a massive introvert so I’m not great at networking and found it hard to participate in industry events during my studies meaning I didn’t have any connections into the mining industry. For me, getting into the industry was likely directly related to my academic results - which got me vacation work, which contributed to getting a graduate role with Gold Road. Study will generate a solid knowledge foundation for which your professional development can leverage off. Also be honest with yourself and what you want, this industry is fantastic but it is set apart from normal lifestyles with a lot of travel and time away, so maintaining relationships with family, friends and partners requires conscious effort and adjustments for whatever routines you may have.