In this episode, we have a returning guest who appeared back in December 2022 (Episode 298). Alex Walker, CEO of East Star Resources, who are focused on the discovery and development of gold and copper deposits in Kazakhstan and have recently been part of BHP’s Xplor programme. Alex is a mining investment banker and resources executive based full-time in Almaty, Kazakhstan. Originally from Australia and also a former Captain in the Australian Army Reserves, he has more than 15 years of mining finance and management experience and in this episode, he provides us with an update on the company since we last spoke, their experience, and key takeaways from the Xplor programme and the progress they have been making across their assets. KEY TAKEAWAYS Alex has been focusing on gold and copper deposits in Kazakhstan. East Star Resources has been part of BHP's Xplor program, which has accelerated the company's progress over the last six months. The company has been digitising data and advancing VMS assets, with a focus on high-grade copper deposits. Alex Walker has been actively involved in promoting mining and exploration in Kazakhstan through the Kazakhstan Chamber of Mines. The next 12 months for East Star Resources involve finalising processes, potential joint ventures, and further exploration to achieve significant milestones. BEST MOMENTS "We've been able to get two targets on the belt. We've been able to advance those in terms of soil sampling, and we've been doing spectral analysis on all of those as we speak."  "It's not unrealistic to think that we won't have, you know, a couple of joint ventures on the cards as well, either in the porphyry exploration or in the SED or both, or something a bit more general."  "We've got Chris as our new technical director. We've got a new exploration manager who's also been living here for a couple of years and is fantastic in helping bring out our policies and our procedures." VALUABLE RESOURCES Mail:        [email protected] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rob-tyson-3a26a68/ X:              https://twitter.com/MiningRobTyson YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/DigDeepTheMiningPodcast  Web:        http://www.mining-international.org https://www.eaststarplc.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/east-star-resources/ https://x.com/EastStar_PLC Investor presentation: https://www.eaststarplc.com/_files/ugd/9a9edb_9ff2d0d6c72d4b509708827e491759ce.pdf ABOUT THE HOST Rob Tyson is the Founder and Director of Mining International Ltd, a leading global recruitment and headhunting consultancy based in the UK specialising in all areas of mining across the globe from first-world to third-world countries from Africa, Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and Australia. We source, headhunt, and discover new and top talent through a targeted approach and search methodology and have a proven track record in sourcing and positioning exceptional candidates into our clients' organisations in any mining discipline or level. Mining International provides a transparent, informative, and trusted consultancy service to our candidates and clients to help them develop their careers and business goals and objectives in this ever-changing marketplace. CONTACT METHOD [email protected] https://www.linkedin.com/in/rob-tyson-3a26a68/ Podcast Description Rob Tyson is an established recruiter in the mining and quarrying sector and decided to produce the “Dig Deep” The Mining Podcast to provide valuable and informative content around the mining industry. He has a passion and desire to promote the industry and the podcast aims to offer the mining community an insight into people’s experiences and careers covering any mining discipline, giving the listeners helpful advice and guidance on industry topics.