Mine Planning Engineer

Mine Planning Engineer Job Summary The Mine Planning Engineer is responsible for designing, scheduling, and optimizing mining sequences to ensure safe, sustainable, and profitable mineral extraction. This role bridges the gap between long-term strategic life-of-mine (LOM) goals and daily pit or underground operations. The ideal candidate uses advanced spatial modeling and scheduling software to balance ore quality, equipment utilization, and waste management. Location: Challis, Idaho, United States (2x2 rotation) Key Responsibilities • Mine Design & Layout: Develop and optimize detailed pit phases, pushbacks, stopes, haul roads, waste dumps, and stockpile layouts using specialized industry software. • Production Scheduling: Prepare rolling short-to-medium-term mine plans and production schedules (ranging from weekly targets to 24-month forecasts) to meet extraction and processing goals. • Reconciliation & Variance Analysis: Track, analyze, and report on actual daily production versus the established mine plan. Identify deviations, analyze root causes, and implement corrective action plans. • Cross-Functional Collaboration: Coordinate directly with Geology, Geotechnical, Survey, and Daily Operations to integrate physical constraints, regulatory conditions, and safety measures into executable mine plans. • Economic Optimization: Run evaluation scenarios to maximize resource recovery, ensure appropriate ore blending, minimize haulage cycle times, and lower cost-per-tonne metrics. Package Details Required Qualifications • Education: Bachelor's degree in Mining Engineering, Geological Engineering, or a closely related engineering discipline. • Experience: 3 to 7+ years of progressive engineering experience working directly on-site in a surface or underground mining operation. Technical Skills & Attributes • Software Proficiency: Advanced hands-on experience with standard mine design and sequencing platforms, such as Deswik, Vulcan • Data Analytics: Strong analytical skills using Excel, Power BI, or coding languages (VBA/Python) to model fleet logic and production metrics. • Communication: Exceptional interpersonal skills to clearly communicate complex spatial plans and operational variations to both on-site crews and executive leadership.