Key Consultants

George Byers is a 35-year mining and energy industry veteran with extensive executive experience in federal, state and local government relations. He has worked in a variety of settings, including public policy issues involved with mineral exploration, project siting and development, land use and public affairs issues in the Western United States. He has been a consultant to the precious metals, rare earths, copper, and uranium industries on a variety of public and government issues. Mr. Byers has held senior level positions with Cameco, Rio Algom, Newmont and Santa Fe Pacific. While with Cameco, he was detailed as vice president of New Mexico site development and government relations to Louisiana Energy Services. He successfully built the case for a European/U.S. consortium to site the first commercial gas centrifuge uranium enrichment facility in the western hemisphere. This critical facility is now in commercial operation and is the first major US nuclear fuel cycle facility to be licensed by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in over 30 years. Mr. Byers holds a BA in Geology and a Masters of Urban & Regional Planning, both from the University of Mississippi.

Jaye Pickarts is a senior process engineer with more than 31 years of leadership in project management for development, acquisitions, engineering design, permitting and reclamation, mine closure, water management and process operations. He has extensive experience with projects in North and South America, Australia, Africa and Kazakhstan. His mine operations experience includes supervisory, maintenance and engineering positions working with precious metals, base metals and industrial mineral companies, including test programs, capital and operating cost estimates, and start-up and operations assistance. In his role as Senior Vice President for Knight Piesold and Company, he was responsible for successfully coordinating the completion of numerous feasibility studies and environmental permitting programs both in the US and internationally. Mr. Pickarts has a BS in mineral processing engineering from the Montana College of Mineral Science and Technology and completed the Business Administration Graduate Program at the University of Nevada, Reno. 

Mr. Schlauch has more than 40 years of experience in legal issues relating to the mining industry. He was a practicing attorney at Holland & Hart LLP from February 1995 until his retirement as a Partner in December 2009 and as Of Counsel in July 2011. His former practice included providing legal counsel on diverse mining issues, including operational and regulatory matters, litigation, arbitration, structuring and negotiation of mining related transactions, and many other legal activities associated with mining and exploration and development activities. After retiring from Holland & Hart, Mr. Schlauch continued to provide legal consulting for the Company until July 2012. Mr. Schlauch has worked extensively on public land legal issues as they relate to location, maintenance and patenting of mining and mill site claims, land exchanges, acquisition of various property use rights and the resolution of claim conflicts. From 2000 to 2010, he served as an Adjunct Professor of Law at the University of Denver School of Law, where he taught courses on mineral law and policy. Mr. Schlauch has been active in natural resource industry professional organizations and is the past President of the Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation, as well as the past President of the International Mining Professionals Society. Mr. Schlauch graduated cum laude with an A.B. in chemistry from Colgate University in 1963 and completed a law degree in 1966 at the University of Virginia. He also holds an appointment as an Honorary Lecturer and Course Director on the Faculty of the Centre for Energy, Petroleum and Minerals Law and Policy at the University of Dundee, Scotland. Since 2013, Mr. Schlauch has been employed by the U.S. Department of Commerce as an expert consultant on the development of sustainable mining industries in Afghanistan and Kosovo. 

Randall Scott is a metallurgical engineer with over 45 years of experience in the mining industry, most recently as the President and Chief Executive Officer and Board member of Rare Element Resources. Ltd. Mr. Scott served as an officer of Rare Element Resources from December 2011 through October 2022 and as a director from February 2012 through October 2022. Prior to his leadership of Rare Element Resources, Mr. Scott led other company’s performance teams in the mining and industry in operations, administration, project development program management, business development and major improvement initiatives. Mr. Scott worked for Thompson Creek Metals Company Inc. as Vice President, Corporate Responsibility and Strategy from May 2011 to November 2011, as Director Strategic Management from August 2010 to May 2011 and as Project Sponsor Enterprise Resource Planning Implementation from January 2010 to August 2010. Prior to that, he served as Vice President of Metals Norwest Corporation during January 2010. Mr. Scott held senior management positions with Cyprus Amax Coal Company and RAG American Coal Company from 1995 to 2001, and prior to that Mr. Scott held senior management positions with Cyprus Metals Company from 1989 until 1995. Mr. Scott received his Bachelor of Science degree in metallurgical engineering from the Colorado School of Mines and his Masters of Business Administration from the University of Arizona.