Senior Metallurgist / Process Engineer

Job Summary

Our client in the Gold & Precious Metals industry is seeking an experienced Senior Metallurgist / Process Engineer to lead metallurgy, flowsheet evaluation, testwork, process-design criteria, vendor technical review, commissioning support, controlled trial processing, and pilot-performance evaluation.

The immediate assignment is to establish and validate the process-design basis for a controlled 5 tph modular pilot. Carbon-in-leach (CIL), carbon-in-pulp (CIP), and any justified gravity-assisted configuration will remain testwork-led decisions. Current CIP/CIL terminology, preliminary equipment lists, or vendor proposals will not be treated as final flowsheet selections.

Key Responsibilities

1. Metallurgical Data Review and Testwork Programme

• Review available sampling, assay, production, sales, stockpile and VAT-leach information and identify data limitations.
• Inspect existing workings, stockpiles, VAT-leach feed and available bulk samples relevant to pilot design.
• Prepare a representative sampling and testwork plan covering sample selection, compositing, preparation, chain of custody, laboratory requirements, QA/QC and data validation.
• Define and supervise, as justified by the ore characteristics, mineralogical review, crushing and grinding or comparative comminution tests, grind-size sensitivity, gravity recovery assessment, bottle-roll/CIL/CIP leach tests, leach kinetics, residence time, reagent consumption, water chemistry, carbon loading, elution implications, variability composites and cyanide detoxification/tailings-behaviour assessment.
• Document tests that are not required and the technical basis for that decision.
• Review the holistic programme’s rapid preliminary testwork as an early screen and define the confirmatory and variability work required before design freeze.

2. 5 tph Process Design Basis and Flowsheet Evaluation

• Prepare and maintain the 5 tph mass balance and process-flow diagram.
• Define feed tonnes per hour, operating hours, availability, feed moisture, particle-size distribution, grind size, leach residence time, tank volumes, carbon inventory, reagent consumption, water balance, power demand, tailings rate and expected recovery range.
• Evaluate CIL, CIP and gravity-assisted configurations through representative testwork and process-design review.
• Define instrumentation, sampling points, laboratory requirements, control philosophy, data logging, metal-accounting rules and process acceptance criteria.
• Review vendor equipment for efficient operation and turndown at 5 tph rather than accepting nominal equipment capacities that may be oversized.
• Provide process inputs to mine planning, grade control, exploration priorities, water, power, tailings and operating-cost assessments.

3. Vendor Review and Conditional Procurement

• Prepare technical RFQ packages for crushing, milling, classification, gravity, leach/CIL/CIP, carbon handling, elution/electrowinning, reagent systems, detoxification, tailings and process-water systems.
• Prepare technical bid comparisons covering duty, performance, turndown, utilities, instrumentation, spares, delivery, commissioning support and lifecycle risks.
• Review vendor guarantees and identify guarantees that are not supportable until further testwork is complete.
• Recommend variation rights, cancellation rights, performance-testing requirements, factory or site acceptance testing, commissioning hold points and punch-list close-out requirements.
• Support Project Controls and Finance in distinguishing planning allowances from committed quotations.

4. Separate VAT and Pilot Metal Accounting

• Maintain separate metallurgical balances for current VAT leaching and the 5 tph CIL/CIP pilot.
• Define sample points, sample frequency, laboratory turnaround, head-grade measurement, tailings measurement, recovered-gold calculation, stockpile movements and reconciliation rules.
• Coordinate with the Mining Engineer on feed source, chain of custody, stockpiles, tonnes, moisture, grade and dispatch data.

5. Commissioning, HSE and Operations Support

• Review plant layout and interfaces with the mine, stockpiles, laboratory, water, power, reagent storage, tailings facility and environmental controls.
• Prepare dry-commissioning, wet-commissioning, water-only, reagent-introduction, controlled-ore-introduction and ramp-up procedures.
• Prepare operator training materials, standard operating procedures, sampling procedures, emergency requirements and process-control checklists.
• Establish acceptance criteria covering throughput, grind size, recovery, availability, downtime, reagent use, water use, tailings condition, cyanide control, data quality and operator readiness.
• Participate in mechanical completion, punch-list close-out, cold commissioning and hot commissioning.
• Have authority to recommend a commissioning hold point where sample, process, reagent, tailings, cyanide or metal-accounting controls are inadequate.

6. Controlled Trial, Pilot Performance and Scale-Up

• Approve the controlled trial feed protocol with the Mining Engineer and HSE lead.
• Track tonnes, head grade, recovered ounces, tailings grade, recovery, availability, downtime, reagent use, power, water, carbon performance and operating incidents.
• Issue daily commissioning summaries and weekly pilot-performance reports.
• Compare actual performance with the design basis and identify bottlenecks, unstable conditions, corrective actions and scale-up risks.
• Lead the process section of the 30-day operating review and 90-day reconciliation for scale-up decision.
• Recommend whether the plant should remain at demonstrated capacity, undergo corrective modification or proceed to a larger capacity study.

7. Exploration and PFS / Expansion Support

• Define additional metallurgical samples required from RC/DD drilling and detailed exploration.
• Prepare variability-testwork requirements for future resource domains.
• Update recovery, operating-cost, water, power, reagent and tailings assumptions for the PFS/expansion concept.
• Ensure pilot performance is not presented as proof of reserve continuity or full-scale economic viability.

8. Laboratory and QA/QC Management

• Coordinate with the Assay / QA-QC / Data Manager and laboratories on sample analysis.
• Review assay certificates, blanks, standards, duplicates, laboratory turnaround and exceptions for metallurgical samples.
• Maintain accurate, auditable records of samples, testwork, results, interpretations, process balances and decisions.

Qualifications & Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Metallurgical Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Mineral Processing or other related field from a recognised institution.
• Registration with the relevant Tanzanian professional body is desirable. Registration or authorisation required for regulated engineering design, certification or statutory sign-off shall be confirmed before assigning those duties.
• A Master’s degree in Metallurgy, Mineral Processing, Chemical Engineering or a related mining field is an added advantage.
• Minimum of 8 years of progressive metallurgical or mineral-processing experience, including at least 2 year in a supervisory or project role.
• Direct hard-rock gold-processing, metallurgical-testwork and commissioning experience is required. Five years or more is preferred for the lead process role.
• Experience with gravity, CIL/CIP, leaching, carbon circuits, tailings, cyanide controls, metallurgical accounting, laboratory management and vendor/commissioning support is essential.
• Experience with small modular plants, remote-site operations and incomplete geological or metallurgical datasets is highly desirable.
• Familiarity with Tanzanian mining and environmental legislation is essential.
• Strong knowledge of gold metallurgy, process design, plant operations, CIL/CIP, gravity, tailings, cyanide and metal accounting.
• Proficiency in METSIM, JKSimMet or similar tools where appropriate, together with production, laboratory and maintenance data systems.
• Excellent QA/QC, laboratory, analytical, reporting, communication and troubleshooting skills.
• Leadership, integrity, professional ethics and ability to work under pressure at a remote site.
• Fluency in English and Swahili is essential.

Deadline

7th October 2026