PDAC announces recipients of annual exploration and mining awards

The Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) has announced the recipients of the 2025 PDAC Awards which recognise outstanding performance in global exploration and mining.

Since the awards were established in 1977, they have become a symbol of excellence, recognising individuals, teams and organisations which have made significant contributions to the exploration and development in Canada and worldwide.

Recipients are selected by the PDAC board of directors based on recommendations from the PDAC Awards committee.

Awards recipients

The recipient of the Bill Dennis Award for a Canadian discovery or prospecting success was Canadian Malartic Exploration Team for the East Gouldie gold find at Agnico Eagle Mines’ Odyssey project in Quebec’s Abitibi region.

This discovery was made in 2018 and represents a major milestone in Canadian mineral exploration due to its size, geological significance and economic value.

By the end of 2023, East Gouldie boasted reserves of 5.2 million ounces gold and resources of 240,000 ounces indicated and 3.3 million ounces inferred.

The deposit’s high grades have enhanced the economic viability of the Odyssey mine’s East Malartic and Odyssey deposits are entering production in stages alongside East Gouldie.

The Skookum Jim Award for indigenous achievement in the mineral industry went to David Kritterdlik for his work in integrating the values of the local Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit (IQ) (previously known as Eskimos) into the mining industry.

As Agnico Eagle’s IQ and wildlife advisor, Mr Kritterdlik has played a pivotal role in bridging traditional Inuit knowledge and western science, particularly in his home region of Nunavut.

The award is named after Skookum Jim, who was the indigenous leader of the group that discovered Canada’s premier Yukon Klondike goldfields.

The Sustainability Award for outstanding leadership in environmental protection and community relations went to the Teck Resources and UN Women: Originarias Program for its transformative impact on indigenous women in Chile.

Since its inception in 2016, the program has empowered over 8000 people by focusing on leadership, economic autonomy and community engagement with highlights including the creation of the Empowerment Centre for indigenous women and the training of over 2000 indigenous women to enhance their leadership and advocacy skills.

The Thayer Lindsley Award for an international mineral discovery will be presented to the Onto Discovery Team for the Onto copper-gold deposit in Indonesia which was first identified with deep drilling in dense and mountainous terrain without any surface mineralisation.

The deposit occurs 500 metres below the surface under unmineralised volcanic rocks and is considered a significant “blind” discovery.

Onto contains approximately 2.1 billion tonnes with an average grade of 0.86% copper and 0.48 grams per tonne gold for an indicated and inferred resource of 17.6 million tonnes copper and 32 million ounces gold.

Finally, the Viola R Macmillan Award for company or mine development went to John Robins for his lifetime leadership and significant contributions to the industry.

Over his 35-year career, Mr Robins has been instrumental in the discovery of multiple deposits and over $3 billion in mergers and acquisitions, alongside more than $1 billion in mineral expenditures across Canada, Latin America and Australia.

Industry convention

The PDAC Awards will be presented at the 93rd PDAC 2025 convention in March, which will welcome up to 30,000 attendees from over 135 countries.

Since it began in 1932, the convention has grown in size, stature and influence and is now the premier event for the world’s mineral industry hosting more than 1100 exhibitors and 700 presenters.

PDAC is the leading voice of Canada’s mineral exploration and development community which employs more than 664,000 people and contributed $132 billion to Canada’s gross domestic product in 2021.

The association currently represents over 7800 members worldwide and is focused on supporting a competitive, responsible and sustainable mining sector.