Finding Finance In Mining With Jeremy Wrathall

From mining to finance to mining again, our guest for today’s episode of “Dig Deep” The Mining Podcast, Jeremy Wrathall, is ready to share his experiences in both industries.

Discover how Jeremy is helping the county of Cornwall be on the top of the British mining game again. Through his company Cornish Lithium, Jeremy is looking into collecting lithium in and around Cornwall. Jeremy says that lithium will have a huge impact, not just on the mining industry, but all other industries that benefit from it since it’s one of the main components of batteries.

His technical experiences in mining and finance surely is a winning combo to start the exploration of lithium in Cornwall. Learn what are the similarities and differences between the two fields and how you could harness both to land on greater opportunities in the mining industry. If you’re one of the mining professionals who also want to make the shift or simply improve your skillset with finance/banking background, then listen to Jeremy as he reveals his tips and strategies on this podcast.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

What are the differences between the mining and the banking industry? There are multiple differences, especially in the technical aspects, but there are also strong similarities. In the latter part of the mining industry, we focus on the finances, eval projects, or feasibility studies. Mining also involves operations and raising finance when building companies.
The differences and similarities in the cultures of the mining and baking industries. In the finance industry, there's a lot of stuff that you need to be updated on. You have to keep an eye and be analytic on the current political news, stocks, currency rates, etc. In the mining industry, you just have to focus on the operations itself.
"If I was gonna try and do what I've done with Cornish Lithium without my background, no one would've taken me seriously." The combination of his knowledge of mining, geology, and finance has helped a lot in approaching investors and starting projects.
Jeremy also gives advice for people who are looking into shifting from the mining industry to the finance industry also. He encourages to take a conversion course (i.e. a Master's Degree in Business) since it will be difficult to conventionally acquire those technical finance skillsets. Remember to be dedicated once you start the journey.
Why lithium? It was 2016 when Jeremy got interested in electric cars. The advancement in electric cars will have a massive effect on the mining industry. For example, an electric car uses 4x much copper than a conventional car. Lithium is used roughly 50% in batteries now. Jeremy thinks the mining industry is ill-prepared for the moment for these demands in the future.

BEST MOMENTS

"Lithium is going to be one of the most important commodities the mining industry has to cope with in the next 20 years."
"In the financial industry, when you finance mines, you got to be both an optimist and a realist."
"The biggest pleasure with the baking industry is enabling people to fulfil that dream - raising money to build mines."
"You have to have a clear vision and direction. It may not necessarily be where you end up but if you know where you get to, it's all part of the journey."

VALUABLE RESOURCES

Cornish Lithium

ABOUT THE HOST

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 to people’s experiences and careers covering any mining discipline, giving the listeners helpful advice and guidance on industry topics.

Rob is the Founder and Director of Mining International Ltd, a leading global recruitment and headhunting consultancy based in the UK specialising in all areas of mining across the globe from the first world to third world countries from Africa, Europe, Middle East, Asia and Australia. We source, headhunt and discover new and top talent through a targeted approach and search methodology and have a proven track record in sourcing and positioning exceptional candidates into our clients’ organisation in any mining discipline or level. Mining International provides a transparent, informative and trusted consultancy service to our candidates and clients to help them develop their careers and business goals and objectives in this ever-changing marketplace.

ABOUT THE GUEST

Jeremy Wrathall is the Managing Director of Cornish Lithium who are looking to explore and develop lithium in and around Cornwall in the UK and this podcast gives an insight in to how Jeremy who studied mine engineering at the Camborne School of Mines then moved into finance/banking before returning to the mining sector, giving an account and advice on anyone looking at a similar career path from mine engineer into a mining finance expert. This background has given him the knowledge and understanding of how to raise capital and what it takes for a new startup or junior miner to succeed.

He also explores the UK mining industry and what could lie ahead in the future with more new commodities coming into the market. Jeremy is looking to take Cornish Lithium into the next decade and develop a world-class operation in Lithium and potentially some other commodities that have been discovered around the Cornwall area.

CONTACT METHOD

Rob Tyson