[Hiring] Director of Science @Metalplant

Role Description

We are seeking a Chief of Science to serve as the technical architect of our "farm-to-battery" value chain. You will be the strategic scientific leader overseeing four distinct technical pillars:

• Geochemistry (ERW)
• Plant Science (Agronomy/Genetics)
• Metallurgy
• Ecological Restoration

You will act as the primary bridge between our external partners (labs, universities, fractional directors) and the executive team, ensuring our science yields valid carbon credits, battery-grade nickel, and ecological co-benefits.

Key Areas of Oversight & Responsibility

• Enhanced Rock Weathering (ERW) & Carbon Science
  • Scientific Strategy: Maximize weathering rates in coordination with Metalplant's ERW partner who will be conducting MRV.
  • Methodology Compliance: Manage the implementation of Metalplant's CDR methodologies to ensure data from field trials meets buyers' standards and verification requirements.
• Plant Genetics & Agronomy
  • Genetics Program (ARPA-E): Oversee our ARPA-E (DOE) grant project and manage the partnership.
  • Agronomic Optimization: Supervise field trials in Albania to optimize planting density and soil amendments. Ensure the balance between hyperaccumulator uptake, weathering and soil health is maintained.
• Process Metallurgy & Hydrometallurgy
  • Flow Sheet Development: Oversee the R&D partnership with US-based metallurgical labs.
  • Commercial Scaling: Manage the technical transition from lab-scale extraction to a "Mini-Pilot" and eventual commercial processing, ensuring the final product meets the purity specifications of EV cathode manufacturers.
  • Supply Chain Integration: Advise on the logistics of transporting reduced biomass ash from Albania to US processing facilities to ensure IRA (Inflation Reduction Act) compliance.
• Ecological Oversight (Managing the Fractional Director)
  • Direct Supervision: You will manage the Fractional Director of Ecology and Restoration, ensuring their work on Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA).
  • Environmental Safety: Accountability for the high-level interpretation of ecotoxicology data (Ni/Cr mobility) provided by the ecology team, monitoring of local watersheds.
  • Restorative Strategy: Ensure the "End-of-Life" plans developed by the Ecology Director are scientifically sound, verifying that soil remediation targets permit the eventual return of land to food-crop agriculture.

Qualifications

• PhD in Geochemistry, Metallurgy, Plant Science, or a related interdisciplinary field.
• The ability to "speak the language" of three distinct sciences:
  • Geochemistry: Understanding silicate weathering and enhanced rock weathering.
  • Agronomy/Plant Genetics: Understanding agronomy and breeding programs.
  • Metallurgy: Understanding hydrometallurgical acid leaching and precipitation.
  • Ecology: Understanding environmental systems, risk analysis, and restoration.
• Experience managing complex, multi-stakeholder projects (e.g., government grants, cross-border research partnerships).
• Ability to translate complex technical data (XRDF, ICP-MS, RTM models) into strategic roadmaps for investors and commercial partners.

Why This Role?

• Impact: You will lead the science behind the only technology capable of producing nickel that removes ~100 tonnes of CO2 per tonne of metal.
• Resources: Work with secured non-dilutive funding (ARPA-E) and exclusive access to a billion-tonne+ olivine deposit.
• Innovation: Manage cutting-edge initiatives to on-shore critical mineral production to the United States.