Hielke Jelsma
Principal Geoscientist – Orthomagmatic Systems
AngloAmerican
Biography
To start, a disclaimer: I am not an expert in geophysics, but work with geophysicists on a daily basis. I am Principal Geoscientist at Anglo American, a leading global mining company with a portfolio that includes diamonds (through De Beers), platinum and other precious metals, copper, nickel and manganese, iron ore, metallurgical coal, and fertilizers. I completed my undergraduate training in 1989 and obtained a PhD in geology in 1993 from the Free University of Amsterdam. Between 1993 and 2003 I lectured geosciences subjects at universities in Zimbabwe and South Africa, acted as geological consultant for exploration and mining companies, focusing on precious metals and base metals projects, and then worked as senior researcher within the cross-disciplinary Centre for Interactive Graphical Computing of Earth Systems with the late Prof. Maarten de Wit at University of Cape Town. In 2003 I joined De Beers and in 2014 Anglo American. My industry experience includes the evaluation of conceptual and project areas across all exploration stages, in over 25 countries on six continents. I am currently a member of the Integrated Systems Geoscience Team, seeking generative opportunities and transformative value for the Anglo American group. I am also involved in the execution and management of research projects that support our business decisions. Over the years, I have specialized in field mapping, structural geology, economic geology and tectonics, topics on which I have authored or co-authored >60 papers in peer-reviewed international journals. Ongoing interests are broad and include mineral systems science, metallogenesis, lithosphere geodynamics, supercontinent cyclicity and regional geological assessments, in which geophysics plays an essential role. I am registered as a Professional Natural Scientist; I am an elected Fellow of the Geological Society of South Africa and Honorary Life Member of the Geological Society of Zimbabwe.
