December 04, 2025

The Power of Broad Experience in Mining

25 minutes

In today’s episode, we're joined by Brad Valiukas, Managing Director of Kaiser Reef, an Australian gold producer with operations in Victoria and Tasmania.

We talk about Brad’s journey from his early days on site to leading Kaiser Reef, what’s driving the company forward, and his views on gold in today’s market. We’ll also discuss how his hands-on experience has shaped his leadership and what advice he’d give to the next generation of mining professionals.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Broad, hands-on experience in every part of a mining operation is essential, as it helps professionals apply knowledge and understand the needs of their internal "customers".

Working for a mining contractor in Australia is strongly recommended early in a career, as it provides diverse experience and helps disseminate good practices throughout the industry.

Career success requires a desire to grow and continuously push forward, with a mindset of never being content because every single operation is depleting a resource.

When faced with the global financial and geopolitical issues currently impacting the gold market, Kaiser Reef maintains a conservative view on gold price while aiming for maximum exposure to potential price upside.

BEST MOMENTS

"I always try and get through to everybody is learn every part of the operation."

"The contracting industry in Australia is so strong and it's such a big driver for the success."

"We never, never ever sitting back in terms of putting eight operations online, basically in eight years, never ever sitting back and saying, right, that's enough, we're in a comfortable position now."

"Think of yourself as a mining professional. So you might have an expertise in geology or engineering or surveying or geotech. You know, try and try and let go of that a little bit."

GUEST RESOURCES

https://kaiserreef.com.au/

VALUABLE RESOURCES

Mail: ⁠[email protected]⁠

LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/rob-tyson-3a26a68/⁠

X: ⁠https://twitter.com/MiningRobTyson⁠ YouTube: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/c/DigDeepTheMiningPodcast⁠

Web: ⁠http://www.mining-international.org⁠

CONTACT METHOD

⁠[email protected]⁠

⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/rob-tyson-3a26a68/⁠

Podcast Description

Rob Tyson is an established recruiter in the mining and quarrying sector and decided to produce the “Dig Deep” The Mining Podcast to provide valuable and informative content around the mining industry. He has a passion and desire to promote the industry and the podcast aims to offer the mining community an insight into people’s experiences and careers covering any mining discipline, giving the listeners helpful advice and guidance on industry topics.

This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media. https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/

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By Rob Tyson

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