The winners of South Australia’s 12th Premier’s Awards in Energy and Mining have been announced, with young women claiming the typically male-dominated individual award categories.
A record 55 nominations resulted in 14 winners and 14 commendations across the 15 categories at the event on 9 November, showcasing the strength and diversity of South Australia’s energy and mining industries.
The individual awards recognise future leaders under 30 in various sectors across the industry.
BHP’s Lakita Kean won the Young Indigenous Achiever Award. Ms Kean started at BHP as the only Indigenous person in her department. She works to improve workforce inclusion and diversity and helped form the Olympic Dam First Nations Ally Network.
Georgia Sleep, also from BHP, took home the Young Achiever Award. Ms Sleep supports the 3,000 FIFO workers at Olympic Dam as a village supervisor. BHP said that she works every day to lead with integrity and care with a strong commitment to community.
The Health and Safety Award for energy went to SA Power Networks for keeping communities safe from electric shock while working to maintain power supplies during the River Murray floods.
ElectraNet and the Barngarla Determination Aboriginal Corporation share the Community Award in energy for an innovative approach to engagement that preserved heritage and enriched the cultural fabric of the Barngarla people during construction of the 270km Eyre Peninsula Link.
Featured image: Award recipients at the 2023 Premier’s Awards ceremony. Image credit: the South Australian Government.
Resources sector awards
Projects and programs in the resources exploration or operations for minerals, extractives or petroleum sectors.
Community
Winner: BHP and Spencer Gulf Cities for the Upper Spencer Gulf socio-economic knowledge base update.
Commendation: BHP and Antakirinja Matu-Yandunytjatjara Aboriginal Corporation for their resource industry pathways.
Commendation: BHP and Healthy Environs for the community hub at Roxby Downs.
Environment category
Commendation: Hanson Construction Materials for Planting Day at White Rock Quarry.
Health and safety
Winner: KAEFER Integrated Services for the KAEFER SAFE Hands campaign.
Commendation: BHP for its Whole Body Vibration project.
Inclusion and wellbeing category
Winner: KAEFER Integrated Services for the KAEFER Scaffold Traineeship program.
Commendation: BHP for improving inclusion and career pathways for Indigenous employees at Olympic Dam.
Innovation and collaboration
Winner: BHP and CiDRA Minerals Processing for their partnership for first of a kind grind circuit rougher at Carrapateena.
Commendation: Custom Mining Solutions for its Void Monitor project.
Productivity and improvement
Winner: Fleet Space Technologies for its ExoSphere project.
Commendation: Liberty Primary Steel for its Slag-free Tapping project.
