Testimonials
what do people say about ALTA conferences?

“This must be one of the most professional conferences on the calendar in our field and certainly the best organised. The arrangements and attention to detail are absolutely superb. The venue and food were great and the vibe and interactions were also excellent. You have certainly found a formula that works. It was very worthwhile and interesting for me and I will certainly try to get there again in the near future.”
Dr Kathy Sole, Consulting Hydrometallurgist, Kathryn C. Sole Consulting (South Africa)

“No other conference I have been to that gives the opportunity to the audience to hear about many different aspects of the extractive metallurgical industry in one short week, from process economics and project development to operation challenges, and then all the way down to fundamental chemistry. The topics were engaging and stimulating to the mind of a curious person like me, and I found your conference an ideal incubator for idea generation!”
Dr Ahmad Ghahreman, Assistant Professor, Hydrometallurgy and Environment, Queen’s University (Canada)

“ALTA 2019 was the best yet, with record attendance. Undoubtedly, this is the premier conference of its type in our industry, and kudos to Alan, Allison and the team for another successful event. A highlight is the panel discussions at the end of the sessions, wherein we get lots of informed discussion, something over and above the routine presentations, which add enormously to the overall value. I look forward to the 25th event.” 
Dr Bryn Harris, Managing Partner, NMR360 Inc (Canada)

“ALTA 2019 has again been an excellent extractive metallurgy forum attended by experts from both the industry and scientific organisations, by practitioners and masterminds. This combination makes the event most productive and creative. New trends and ideas are presented and discussed not only from the academic point of view, but in particular with regard to practicability as well as economic and environmental relevance. My congratulations and full respect to Alan Taylor and his team for perfectly organizing another great event in this field.”
Dr Horst Märten, Vice President Technology, Heathgate Resources Pty. Ltd. (Australia) and CEO, UIT Umwelt- und Ingenieurtechnik GmbH Dresden (Germany)

“Usually a conference is hit and miss. If I can learn one or two new things at a conference it’s probably a reasonable success. The ALTA conference simply doesn’t compare. The sessions exceeded the highest expectations with pertinent and practical presentations and discussions, knowledgeable industry representatives and service providers with appropriate products.”
Peter Longo, Vice President, Project Development, Denison Mines (Canada)

“Thank you very much for that great presentation. I think that it went really well – I would never have thought that it was your first online short course! Everything went smoothly, video was high quality and audio was very good. The material itself was very informative and I appreciated the coverage of industry application and good practical examples from Alan’s experience. I look forward to the next session.”

Nicole Jansen van Rensburg, Principal Advisor – Hydrometallurgy Studies – Process Optimization, Growth & Innovation, Rio Tinto (Australia)

“I was delighted when Alan Taylor invited me to present a paper to commemorate the 20th Anniversary of the Commissioning of the Anaconda, Bulong and Cawse HPAL Projects. Alan said that the story had to be told while the original ground breakers are still around to tell it. My previous attendance was at ALTA 1997 when we were about 80% complete with Bulong detailed engineering and I was only able to attend the social events. This time, I was able to attend all of the technical presentations. In addition to this valuable learning experience, was the ability to meet up and talk face to face with most of the players in the very limited circle of HPAL specialists from around the world. No other conference offers this unique opportunity. I sincerely hope that I will be able to attend the landmark 25th Anniversary of the ALTA Conferences.”
Paul Tucker, Manager of Engineering, Bantrel (Canada)

"ALTA-ruistic
ALTA is the best value exhibition booth option on the METS circuit by a long way!  Why?

• Critical mass of attendees drawn by the first class, carefully curated content and the high-quality keynote speakers
• Attendees who are knowledgeable and seeking ideas/change to reduce risk and improve performance
• They tend to be the “doers” and achievers of the mining and mineral processing industry with the clout to make things happen

Plus….Organisers with skin in the game who genuinely care about satisfying the needs of all types of participants, and actively join the dots with personal introductions and suggestions."
Dr Grant Wellwood, General Manager, Jenike and Johanson Pty Ltd (Australia)

“As a student volunteer, you are immediately immersed into a community of esteemed minds who are working to innovatively tackle the biggest challenges in the metallurgical industry. Whilst assisting the fantastic team at ALTA, you get the opportunity to sit in on some of these exciting conferences whilst networking with academics and industry leaders from all around the world! One of my most notable experiences was discussing the future of nuclear power and the energy transition with leaders from several countries. Alan Taylor, his family and the ALTA team guide you every step of the way, they truly are passionate about facilitating the sharing of knowledge across global, industrial and academic borders.”
Wayne Zaccheus, President (2019), ACES: Association of Chemical Engineering Students, Curtin University (Australia)

“ALTA is a very good forum for hydrometallurgists from all over the world in Ni-Co-Cu, U-REE, Li and Gold-PM to present new ideas, new developments and challenges faced by the mining community. The conference also provides a good platform for research organisations, engineering companies, equipment suppliers, service providers and industries to communicate and interact with each other, exchange and collect information and data, share good stories and bad lessons. Each time I attend ALTA, I enjoy talking with people from different areas and learn a lot of useful information. The short courses also are very valuable for hydrometallurgists and engineers to understand the best practices of leach, solvent extraction and ion exchange technology. I would love to attend this conference again in the near future.”
Dr James Chun Wang, Group VP Technical & Operations, China Molybdenum Co., Ltd. (CMOC) (China)

“ALTA keeps getting better and better. How do they do it? Better speakers? Better program selection and management? Better format? Better exhibitions? Better short courses? Exemplary professionalism and organisation? It is probably all of the foregoing which means that ALTA attracts better and better speakers, attendees and exhibitors. This makes ALTA the “must-attend” conference/meeting for those in the Cu, Pb, Co, Ni, Au, Li, REE, PGM, etc game. In hard-nosed financial terms, it pays for itself by many orders of magnitude – in good times and bad times. I can’t wait for ALTA 2019! See you there.”
Dr Stephen Grocott, Chief Technical Development Officer, Clean TeQ Ltd and Chairman, AMIRA International Ltd (Australia)

“Alan and Allison, congratulations and thanks for all your efforts in pulling together ALTA 2018, and particularly for including the In-Situ Recovery (ISR) Symposium. The ISR sessions, and indeed the entire week, was a great success and I only met people happy with the presentations, the exhibition and the organisation. As always, the social events and networking opportunities were a wonderful complement to the conference technical sessions. I look forward to working with you again in 2019 and beyond to help sustain this flagship conference series, which I am sure is respected and appreciated by all in our industry.”
Dr Dave Robinson, Technology Leader: In Situ Recovery and Processing, CSIRO Minerals and Mining3 (Australia)

“It is always a feast for a metallurgist to attend an ALTA conference. The variety of topics, quality of presentations, countless networking opportunities, great venue and delicious food make this professional gathering a highlight of Perth’s business life. Always seamlessly organised by efficient and friendly Alan, Joan and Allison, ALTA conference sets a standard in conducting professional events to bring the best out of every minute spent by an attendee. We at Ausenco are privileged to share and contribute to the success of ALTA and looking forward to productive collaboration for many years to come.”
Irena Ivanova, Director, Mineral Processing and Studies, WA, Ausenco (Australia)

“I’d like to take this opportunity to congratulate you, Alan and the rest of the ALTA team on what was a superbly organised and very successful conference. My overall impression garnered from the conference was of a renewed mood of optimism and activity in our industry, and it was great to experience the infectious and vibrant atmosphere amongst the delegates at ALTA 2018. This was reflected both in the high quality of the presentations, and in the liveliness of the interactions between the participants (which was particularly noticeable during the panel discussions). If you’ll excuse the pun, it is clear that ALTA remains the gold standard for conferences in the field of hydrometallurgy. I look forward to future ALTA conferences with enthusiasm!”
John Neale, Technical Specialist, Biotechnology Division, Mintek (South Africa)

“If one is into the hydrometallurgy of Ni-Co-Cu, U-REE, Li, Gold-PM, this is the annual conference to attend. ALTA has got the balance of project development, operations, vendors and academia just right. ALTA’s short courses are a good overviews/reviews from a project perspective. Attended by old hands as well as novices, the courses often turn into a seminar bringing everyone up to date on developments. Add in the conference exhibition and ALTA is the watering hole at which to annually meet the participants in your industry.”
Mark Benz, President and P.Eng, MRB International Consulting Ltd (Canada)

“The ALTA Conferences have had an enormous impact on the dissemination of technical information to the worldwide metallurgical community. Alan and his staff root out papers covering recent developments in nickel, cobalt, copper, uranium and gold metallurgy. Attending an ALTA conference therefore allows for quickly coming “up to speed” with new ideas and innovations. Combining this with the chance to meet with colleagues from all over the world and to meet vendors of specialized equipment and services makes it imperative to come back again and again to Perth for the meetings. ALTA has performed an invaluable service to the industry by hosting these meetings.”
Dr David Dreisinger, Professor, Department of Materials Engineering, University of British Columbia (Canada)

“Bottom line – I think ALTA is pretty much the best technical conference I’ve found. Do keep it so…”
Mike Dry, Arithmetek Inc. (Canada)

“I have made ALTA a key “must attend Nickel, Copper and Uranium conference” for the past 15+ years. Great for networking and essential for discussing and debating new technological developments.”
Grenvil Dunn, Principal Process Engineer, Orway Mineral Consultants WA Pty Ltd (Australia)

“The ALTA conference has been a key tool in understanding our client’s needs. The ALTA is not only a knowledge hub, but also a gathering place for Hydromet operators and suppliers, exchanging knowledge in the ongoing efforts. ALTA is excellently orchestrated by Alan Taylor – to improve the industry productivity and smooth operations. A must for any who are seriously interested in being part of this niche industry.”
Aviv Scheinman, Director, Golan Plastic Products (Pexgol) (Israel)

“As a Trade Association it is important to interact with key players in our sector and ALTA provides one of the best mining related conferences in this respect. Well organised, packed with interesting papers, seminars, short-courses and even an exhibition, it is one of the best annual events of this type.”
David Weight, General Manager, The Cobalt Development Institute (UK)

“I have attended every ALTA HYDROMET conference since the first one in Melbourne. Since then, first as an executive in a company supplying solvent extraction technology to the Mining Industry and then as an independent consultant, I have found the ALTA conferences excellent in terms of updating Nickel, Copper, Uranium and Gold hydrometallurgy technology and as a networking venue.”
Murdoch Mackenzie, Consultant Metallurgist (Australia)

“Thank you for your kind words, as well as for a very well organised and run conference! It is one of the best I have had the opportunity to attend, both as regards content and networking. The catering was outstanding. The reception desk staff, in particular Jennifer, were wonderful too. The visit to Perth was indeed pleasant, with such great winter weather. Thanks again, and I hope the forthcoming conferences will be as great a success.”
Dr DR Groot, Senior Lecturer, Department of Materials Science & Metallurgical Engineering, University of Pretoria (South Africa)

“Firstly, my sincere thanks to you and the family for all the hospitality shown to me during the week of the conferences. I thoroughly enjoyed it as well as meeting old friends and making new ones.”
Robert Dunne, Fellow Metallurgy, Newmont Mining Corporation (USA)

“Once again, a wonderful conference and opportunity to catch up with many friends from the past. You and your family have been incredible over the last 19 years with putting together a conference that brings hydromet and new technology together for the betterment of the industry. I remember the first conference in Brisbane in May 1993 after Giri start up. Alan and family, thank you so much for all of your tireless work in making the annual ALTA conferences a wonderful success.”
Tim Robinson, Senior Vice President, Republic Alternative Technologies Pty Ltd (USA)

“Just a word to say I found the conference superb. There seemed to be a greater willingness to share information for the collective gain of the industry. Content was really very appropriate and of a high standard. There are really smart and innovative people out there. Thank you very much.”
Craig Van Buuren, Manager – Process, BIOMIN South Africa (Pty) Ltd (South Africa)

“I attended this wonderful international ALTA Ni/Co/Cu conference each year since 1996. This is a very large gathering of the world class researchers, end users and suppliers. As a researcher, I have benefited from meeting with other researchers to know the state of the art of the technology and discussing with end users to gain what they want. It is the event you cannot afford to miss…”
Dr Chu Yong Cheng, Research Project Leader – Solvent Extraction, Senior Principal Research Scientist, CSIRO Minerals Down Under National Research Flagship (Australia)

“After having returned without problems back to Sofia, we just wanted to send you this email to express our thanks for all of your hard work and preparations for the highly successful ALTA 2015 event last week. You prepared everything in a perfect fashion and were able to create a very pleasant atmosphere. We enjoyed the ALTA 2015 sessions, meetings, heap leaching short course and discussions with you and other colleagues as well. We would also like to express our appreciation for the care and attention that you paid to us as ALTA participants. Thank you for all! You did a great job!”
Todor Angelov, Head Technology Department and Alexpander Tsekov, CEO, Iontech 2000 JSC (Bulgaria)

“I have to say that the 2014 ALTA conference was the best technical conference that I have ever attended! Every aspect of the conference was so well planned and executed that it was truly a pleasure in all regards. I found the in depth scope of the technical presentations and the subsequent topic discussions to be very beneficial. ALTA should be used as a model to plan future mining industry conferences.”
Jody Kelso, President, JRKelso&Associates (USA)

“It was good to attend ALTA again. I think my paper dusted off the advantages of IX resins for gold and I had a few good discussion with a number of people afterwards. In addition to all the other good discussions with old friends and others, some of whom I only see once a year at ALTA! Your enthusiasm in organising this conference is a wonderful example to all of us and I thank you for it.”
Johanna Van Deventer, Technical Sales Manager, South Africa, Purolite International (South Africa)

“ALTA 2012 was, once again, a very well organised and worthwhile event, thanks to the efforts of the organisers. The presentations were excellent for content and depth, and stimulated a high standard of debate. Alan always arranges to focus on one or two topical subjects, and this keeps the event interesting and fresh. ALTA never fails to provide a great opportunity to learn about hydromet developments, project developments and to meet up with old and new friends. Definitely a conference to be recommended!”
Mark Weatherseed, Business Development Manager, SE Asia / Technology Sales Manager – Hydrometallurgy, Outotec South East Asia Pacific (Australia)

“It was a pleasure to help out again at this year’s ALTA Ni-Co-Cu event. Our team at Teck (CESL) that attended certainly enjoyed the technical sessions and industry networking opportunities that the conference always provides. There are not many hydromet focused events that are as well attended and supported such as ALTA and we are pleased to participate whenever we can. You and your team (family) deserve plenty of credit for being able to organize and host this event each year. We are hopeful that we will be there next year with an solid contribution to your Ni-Co-Cu technical sessions.”
Rob Mean, Manager Business Development, CESL Teck Resources Limited (Canada)

“Congratulations to a very good event giving us the chance to explore new business possibilities! It was a good opportunity for us to present our WSA technology to a broad range of potential clients which you have gathered at the conference. I am looking forward to attend future ALTA events and meet with you nice people again.”
Erik Sebastian Eriksson, Sales Manager, Environmental Technology, Haldor Topsøe A/S (Denmark)

“Thank you and the ALTA 2012 organizing committee for the wonderful job of hosting the great conference. I was especially impressed by the short course “Solvent Extraction & Its Application to Copper, Uranium & Nickel-Cobalt” that you taught. Your teaching style and the clearness of your lecture reminds me of my Ph. D adviser, Professor Fischer, who used to teach at Stevens Institute of Technology. He was always rated the best lecturer at all times by the students.”
George (Yunfei) Qiao, PhD, Senior Research Scientist, MOGAS Industries, Inc (USA)

“We indeed enjoyed the ALTA 2012 conference in Perth. The high concentration of experts deeply involved in the most challenging technical subjects gave us a good opportunity not only to present our ideas and processes to a receptive, interested and (helpfully) critical audience, but also to have a series of bilateral meetings in very short time, which had been difficult to organize, if you hadn’t brought all those people together at your conference. We’ll be back in 2013. I look forward to seeing you and your team again.”
Herbert Weissenbaeck, Managing Director, SMS Siemag Process Technologies GMBH (Germany)