Director of Mineral Processing

Director of Mineral Processing About the Company The mining industry has steadily become worse at finding new ore deposits, requiring >10X more capital to make discoveries compared to 30 years ago. The easy-to-find, near-surface deposits have largely been found, and the industry has chronically under-invested in new exploration technology, relying on the manual techniques of yesteryear – even as demand accelerates for copper, lithium, and other metals to build electric vehicles, renewable energy, and data centers. KoBold builds AI models for mineral exploration and deploys those models—alongside our novel sensors—to guide decisions on KoBold-owned-and-operated exploration programs. In the six years since founding, KoBold has become by far both the largest independent mineral exploration company and the largest exploration technology developer. Our data scientists and software engineers, who come from leading technology companies, jointly lead exploration programs with our renowned exploration geologists. KoBold has proven its first discovery with materially less capital than the industry average and found one of the best copper deposits ever discovered: the copper is far more concentrated than the global average of copper mines, and this asset alone is expected to generate meaningful revenue for decades. KoBold has a portfolio of more than 60 other projects, each of which has the potential for another high-quality discovery. KoBold is privately held; investors include institutional asset managers T. Rowe Price and Canada Pension Plan Investments; technology venture capitalists Andreessen Horowitz, Breakthrough Energy Ventures, BOND Capital, Durable Capital, StepStone, and Standard Investments; and natural resources companies Equinor, BHP, and Mitsubishi. About the Role The Mineral Processing Lead will contribute to and lead the development and execution of mineral processing strategy across KoBold’s portfolio, with an initial focus on the Mingomba copper project in Zambia. Reporting to the CTO, this role is responsible for all aspects of process engineering from early-stage metallurgical testwork through feasibility study design and operational readiness. You will define the flowsheet, drive geometallurgical characterization, evaluate processing routes (concentration, hydrometallurgy, smelting), and ensure that mineral processing considerations are integrated into mine planning and economic modeling from the earliest stages. Responsibilities Process Engineering & Flowsheet Development Own the process flowsheet design for Mingomba and future KoBold projects, from scoping through feasibility. Work hands on and with your team to define and manage metallurgical testwork programs: comminution characterization, flotation optimization, hydrometallurgical evaluation, and pilot-scale campaigns. Evaluate and recommend processing routes including froth flotation to concentrate, SX-EW, pressure oxidation, and smelter/refinery toll arrangements. Quantify the economic trade-offs of each. Develop process design criteria, mass and water balances, and equipment specifications for feasibility-level engineering. Lead the assessment of tailings characteristics, reprocessing potential, and environmental implications of process residues. Geometallurgy & Integration Build and maintain a geometallurgical framework that links ore variability (mineralogy, texture, grade distribution) to processing performance with first principles and statistical models. Collaborate with geologists and data scientists to integrate geometallurgical statistics into resource models, mine schedules, and economic analyses. Define sampling protocols for metallurgical characterization of drill core and ensure adequate coverage of ore variability. Ensure mineral processing assumptions are reflected in techno-economic models including TC/RC structures, payable metal calculations, and concentrate penalty elements. Technical Leadership & Team Building Build, lead, and mentor a mi