[Hiring] Computational Hydrogeologist @KoBold Metals

Role Description

In this role, you will own the computation hydrogeology program for KoBold’s exploration projects, including pre-feasibility and feasibility engineering studies. You will help to create water management strategies that maximize the safety, feasibility, and value of future mines. Working closely with field hydrogeologists, mining engineers, and computational scientists, you will lead the development and execution of numerical simulations necessary for quantitative evaluation of the strategies you develop. Your analyses and groundwater flow models will be an integral component of KoBold’s dynamic mine-planning and mine-operations technology.

You will join an outstanding team of geoscientists, data scientists, and software engineers. You will be a core part of the project teams, advancing the science and practice of exploration. In addition to contributing to the development of novel data collection programs, you will work closely with geologists and data scientists to build physics-based and data-driven models of the hydrogeology of our exploration sites. A key challenge will be to quantify uncertainties relevant to mining, and to identify efficient means for reducing these uncertainties as the project advances.

Responsibilities

• Develop multiple alternative groundwater management strategies and quality metrics
• Identify data and information needed to evaluate the efficacy of a proposed strategy, differentiate the system response from other possible strategies, and compare the strengths and weaknesses of various water management actions
• Design data collection programs required to inform evaluation analyses and work with field teams to develop methodologies for execution
• Build and run computational analyses, including numerical simulations of groundwater flow, post-processing algorithms for hydrogeologic insights, and uncertainty quantification
• Work with data scientists to develop novel approaches and tools to extract value from results

Qualifications

• Bachelor's or post-graduate degree in hydrogeology, geology, computational geoscience, geological or environmental engineering, or closely related discipline
• 6-10 years of work experience, including at least 2 years in mining hydrogeology
• Experience with the design and implementation of water management strategies for mining applications
• Experience with the design and implementation of hydrogeologic field studies
• Deep expertise in computational modeling of porous media flows and coupled groundwater/surface-water systems
• Experience analyzing hydrogeologic data to support the development of conceptual and numerical models of groundwater flow, including familiarity with modeling software such as MODFLOW or FEFLOW
• Enthusiasm for developing novel mathematical models, both physics-based and data-driven
• Intellectual curiosity and eagerness to learn about all aspects of mineral exploration, particularly in the geology domain
• Ability to explain technical problems to and collaborate on solutions with domain experts who are not technical
• Excitement about joining a fast-growing early-stage company, comfort with a dynamic work environment, and eagerness to take on an evolving range of responsibilities
• Keen not just to build cool technology, but to figure out what technical product to build to best achieve the business objectives of the company

What to Expect

Joining KoBold means getting the opportunity for hands-on exposure to our exploration projects around the world. All employees are expected to travel to project sites, with a minimum of one week per year. Field-facing and technical roles spend significantly more time in the field.

Company Description

KoBold builds AI models for mineral exploration and deploys those models—alongside our novel sensors—to guide decisions on KoBold-owned-and-operated exploration programs. In the six years since founding, KoBold has become by far both the largest independent mineral exploration company and the largest exploration technology developer.