PDAC has named the recipients of its 2027 awards. Each year, the awards celebrate those who have helped advance mineral exploration and development domestically and globally. Established in 1977, the awards honour individuals, teams and organizations for their achievements and lasting impact across the sector. This year’s awards include six categories: the Bill Dennis Award, the Emerging Leaders Award, the Skookum Jim Award, the Sustainability Award, the Thayer Lindsley Award and the Viola R. MacMillan Award. 

“The 2027 recipients reflect the exceptional talent, leadership and innovation found across our industry,” Karen Rees, president of PDAC, said in a Nov. 3 news release. “We’re especially proud to introduce the Emerging Leaders Award this year, recognizing young professionals who are already making a significant impact in mineral exploration and development. Together, all six recipients exemplify the excellence and dedication that the PDAC Awards have celebrated for 50 years.” 

Recipients will be recognized at the Awards Celebration & Nite Cap event on March 9, 2027, during the PDAC Convention in Toronto. 

The 2027 PDAC Award winners are as follows: 

The Bill Dennis Award honours an individual or exploration team for a significant mineral discovery in Canada with economic potential, or for making a notable contribution to prospecting and exploration in Canada. This year’s award recognizes the Snowline exploration team for its discovery and advancement of the Valley gold deposit at the Rogue project in the Yukon. Discovered through drilling in 2021, Snowline Gold advanced the deposit from initial exploration to a mineral resource estimate and preliminary economic assessment in four exploration seasons.  

According to the 2025 mineral resource estimate, the Valley deposit contains 204 million tonnes of measured and indicated resources grading 1.21 grams per tonne (g/t) of gold for 7.94 million ounces, plus 44.5 million tonnes of inferred resources grading 0.62 g/t of gold for an additional 890,000 ounces. 

The new Emerging Leaders Award, which highlights the achievements of a young professional working in mineral exploration and development, will go to Antoine Caté, principal consultant in structural geology at SRK Consulting Canada. Caté is being recognized for his work integrating geology, data science and artificial intelligence in mineral exploration. Drawing on his background in structural and economic geology and his PhD research in earth sciences, which incorporated machine learning, Caté has developed new approaches to interpreting geological data and identifying exploration targets.  

At SRK, he established and leads a multidisciplinary team of geoscientists and data scientists focused on applying these technologies to industry challenges. Among his notable contributions is helping to advance automated drill core logging—which uses machine learning and computer vision to identify and log geological features—from an experimental concept into a practical service for the industry. He co-authored a paper on the technology, published in CIM Journal, Vol. 16, No.1, and he has shared his expertise through industry workshops, courses, presentations and publications.  

The Citxw Nlaka’pamux Assembly (CNA) will receive the Skookum Jim Award, which promotes Indigenous leadership in the assessment, stewardship and development of mineral resources. CNA is being recognized for its role in strengthening community involvement in mineral development and environmental stewardship, including its leadership in the environmental assessment of the mine life extension project at the Highland Valley Copper operation in British Columbia. During the assessment, the CNA led studies and a technical review, as well as community engagement to ensure Nlakak'pamux perspectives informed the process. 

Formed in 2013, the not-for-profit is governed by representatives from eight participating bands: Ashcroft Indian Band, Boston Bar First Nation, Coldwater Indian Band, Cook’s Ferry Indian Band, Nicomen Indian Band, Nooaitch Indian Band, Shackan Indian Band and Siska Indian Band.  

The Sustainability Award recognizes leadership in environmental protection and community relations in the mining industry. B2Gold will receive the award for its efforts in transforming the energy supply at its Otjikoto gold mine in Namibia through a decade-long shift towards renewable energy. The energy supply at the mine, which began commercial production in 2014, initially came from heavy fuel oil generators that required between 20 million and 24 million litres of fuel annually.  

By 2022, the mine had transitioned away from heavy fuel oil due to the development of a seven-megawatt on-site solar plant, which opened in 2018. B2Gold expanded the use of renewable power at Otjikoto with a 10-megawatt off-site solar facility, which reached commercial operation in 2025. As a result, renewable sources supplied approximately 79 per cent of the mine’s electricity in 2025. The projects also supported local employment, with more than 120 people trained during the first plant’s construction. 

The Thayer Lindsley Award recognizes an individual or team of explorationists responsible for a recent mineral discovery anywhere in the world that shows potential for economic development. This award is being given to the Pan American Silver La Colorada exploration team for discovering and advancing the La Colorada skarn deposit, a large silver-lead-zinc skarn system beneath the company’s La Colorada silver mine in Zacatecas, Mexico.  

The discovery, announced in 2018, was followed by over US$110 million in exploration spending and around 360,000 metres of drilling. According to a 2026 mineral resource estimate, the indicated resources of the La Colorada skarn totalled 265.4 million tonnes containing 309 million ounces of silver grading 36 g/t, 7.6 million tonnes of zinc grading 2.85 per cent and 3.6 million tonnes of lead grading 1.37 per cent. A Colorado School of Mines study based on over 1,700 skarn deposits identified La Colorada as the world’s second largest silver-lead-zinc skarn deposit. 

The Viola R. MacMillan Award recognizes leadership in the management and financing of mineral exploration and development. The 2027 recipient, Cupric Canyon Capital, is being recognized for financing and developing the Khoemacau copper-silver mine in Botswana. Founded in 2010, the company identified the potential for a large underground copper-silver operation in Botswana and expanded the underground mineable resource from 13 million tonnes to 92 million tonnes. 

In 2019, Cupric Canyon secured US$650 million in financing through debt, a silver stream and equity investment. Development of the mine began in 2020, and it reached full production in late 2022. The project was completed at a capital cost of US$412 million, creating roughly 1,600 direct jobs in Botswana. In March 2024, the company sold its Khoemacau business to MMG Limited in a transaction with a total value of approximately US$2.08 billion, including debt settlement.