A little over 40 years ago, Paul Searson was offered a job with the IT department of the Mt Newman Mining company.

The latest computer tech at the time was a 3270 PC which had 512kb of RAM and 1MB floppy disk drive and could emulate a terminal to the IBM mainframe.

“In those days, the IBM mainframe took up half a floor in Mt Newman house in Perth, had 4MB of RAM and banks of removable hard disks,” laughed Paul as he reflected on the early days of working on St George’s Terrace in the Perth CBD.

Paul studied science, computing science and an MBA and in 1990, he moved from IT into the BHP planning and analysis team, conducting strategic planning and investment evaluation for the iron ore asset. He also spent two years with BHP Minerals in the office in San Francisco.

When the Californian office closed, he moved back to Perth to head up the planning and analysis team before moving to the iron ore growth projects team, working on the series of Rapid Growth Projects.

Paul has been buying and selling nickel since 2007 – leading Nickel West’s negotiations for sales and purchases with third parties in the Goldfields region such as nickel suppliers and mid-tier miners Independence Group, Western Areas and Mincor Resources.

“Two years after WMC was acquired, I moved into what had become known as Nickel West,” reflected Paul.

“When I was in iron ore, you visited the port or the mines where they have these massive stockpiles – 250,000 tonnes in size, with stackers and reclaimers to blend the ore so there’s very little variation. Then I came to Kambalda, which had a 20,000-tonne stockpile being blended with a front-end loader! I thought – how agricultural. Then I realised the different scale and value of the product.

“I buy ore and concentrate from third parties. I also sell our other products and by-products domestically. Nickel West was a very, very different business for BHP – in terms of what it did and the culture of the business. People wore many hats and took care of lots of things … albeit everything was on a much smaller scale,” Paul said.

“As far as the work was concerned – it was diverse and exciting. As a business Nickel West was complicated and there were lots of opportunities to make a difference and have an impact.”

In 2007, after peaking at a massive high of US$55,000 a tonne, the nickel price was in freefall, dropping at around 30 per cent per quarter.

“At the time, we were buying nickel ore from a string of about 10 different companies, including Mincor, Sally Malay (now Panoramic), Lightening Long (now IGO), Consolidated Minerals, Jubilee, Norilsk, Titan Resources and Australian Mines,” explained Paul.

“Some of the third parties were desperate. With the price dropping so fast, they didn’t know if they were trading insolvent as directors. They were making business decisions without knowing if they had cash to pay for it. They were liable and it was obviously very stressful for them. We were trying to assist them wherever we could,” explained Paul.

“It was very sad, seeing these companies closing and people being let go. Most of those mines are still shut, with Mincor just restarting now.

"When I joined Nickel West, there were 14 people in the team. In the down turn, the 14 became four. Then the four split into two and two. Then the two became one and I was the sole remainder in the third party management team.

“Nickel West was in trouble – it looked like we were going to be sold or shut. There were no funds for reinvestment. The people that couldn’t handle the uncertainty left. The people that were struggling were encouraged to leave. And those that remained were absolutely passionate about keeping the business going. It is amazing to work with people that are passionate about what they do and all aiming for the same goal,” said Paul.

“I’ve certainly seen some highs and lows. There were some times when the nickel price went under US $7500 per tonne. Personally, I learned that a positive thinker can do an awful lot if they really put their mind to it. People that are ‘inspired’ are much more productive than people that are just ‘there’.”

Paul is excited about the long-term future of Nickel West.

“The battery minerals market is a very exciting growth story. It is a once in a generational revolution in an entire industry,” said Paul.

“There’s a very good photo of a street in the US. The street is filled with horses and carts, and just a single car. In ten years that street was full of cars with a single horse and cart, and I can see that happening here with electric vehicles displacing internal combustion vehicles.”

Paul has been instrumental in managing the negotiation of Nickel West’s contract with Mincor, which led to the Kambalda Nickel Concentrator restarting this month.

“I truly believe that we have an exciting future. With the nickel price going up, exploration has restarted in the Goldfields – and when you look, you will find! Some of the mines that closed with restart and some new ones will open up. And that’s what I enjoy – shaping the long-term future of the nickel industry.”

Paul has seen some big changes over 40 years, but says that being part of the ‘Big Australian’ does provide lots of opportunities.

“At any time in my history at BHP that I got tired of what I was doing and wanted a change – something has come up. That’s a huge advantage in working for a large, diverse company. Sometimes you will look and sometimes the opportunities will seek you.

“Being in marketing gives you a lot of opportunities using customer relationships and market intelligence. The key is an ability to understand your customer and the technical capabilities of the business – and marry those two together.

“I don’t know what’s coming next in my career but I am excited about Kambalda restarting, Mincor coming back online and the huge pipeline of projects ahead of Nickel West. I’m part of the BHP family now. I was married whilst with BHP. All my children were born while I have been at BHP, and now two of my kids work for Nickel West. It’s definitely become a family business!”

Congratulations on your 40 years Paul. It’s exciting to consider what the future holds for Nickel West when you eventually hit the 50 year milestone!