Could you introduce Getech?

Established initially as a spin-off from Leeds University, Getech has spent the last 30 years collecting, analysing and building a unique database of magnetic, gravity and geologic interpretation data covering the most recent 300 million years of the Earth’s evolution. We have brought this data together in our proprietary Earth evolution digital twin called ‘Globe’. Globe is an extensive cloud-based geoscience platform that delivers its content into an energy industry standard geographic information system, or ‘GIS’, to enable advanced visualisation and analytics.

Our proprietary geological, climatic and oceanographic data offer unique, actionable insights and understanding for locating natural resources in the subsurface. First used widely in the oil and gas sector, our data and insights are now being applied by a wider range of corporates looking to find new energy and mineral resources to help advance the energy transition. Our new clients include explorers for minerals and metals, gasses such as natural hydrogen and helium, as well as governmental authorities such as the UK North Sea Transition Authority. 

Could you elaborate on your diversification strategy and the ways in which Getech could play a role in supporting and identifying subsurface resources vital to the energy transition?

In the critical minerals space, we are very good at finding sedimentary rocks. For instance, using a minerals system targeting approach, we can search back through millions of years of Earth evolution, and look for the genetic signatures of yet-to-be-found occurrences of copper, lithium, zinc and so on.  

We feed our data into artificial intelligence and machine learning algorithms to identify where the appropriate conditions existed in the past to enable the formation and preservation of these resources, and so find where else they may be located today.

Where do you think the world will be looking more to find those critical resources?

Traditionally, mining companies are interested in following trends of known resources to predict nearby locations, but Getech is able to help identify completely new exploration ‘search spaces’. Much of this work is coming from South America, Africa and Eastern Europe-Central Asia markets. The hottest area, based on the recent requests we have had, is probably Kazakhstan, and, commodity-wise, copper, zinc and lithium. We are also seeing more interest in Mongolia, as our recent work with Asian Battery Minerals and BHP proves. Mongolia is ripe for further exploration using more detailed data – and this is where Getech would come into play.

Do you believe increasing demand for critical minerals like copper will send more investors to what are deemed “higher risk” jurisdictions like Mongolia?

I believe it will always come down to cost. The “easy” resources, outcropping at the surface, have already been found. Unequivocally, there are more resources underground; our data on Australia or Africa show that those resources get bigger at depth, but they will naturally be more expensive to explore and mine. In the search for the best risk-reward ratio, companies will either go looking for low-hanging fruit in the more challenging jurisdictions or pursue more expensive resources in the tried-and-tested, less risky jurisdictions. 

What makes Getech a good investment?

Getech’s valuation has come down in recent years, mirroring the trend in the oil and gas sector, since we were heavily focused on this sector. This means that now is a good time to make an investment in the company, buying at a very low share price and at an inflection point as we have already gone through the pains of redeveloping our services and making them applicable to the energy transition. In 2022, 66% of our revenue came from the O&G sector, and the rest is from minerals and geothermal. My goal is to increase our business from green industries and bring the ratio to least 50% - this would place us under the Green Economy Mark, which recognizes London-listed companies deriving half or more of their revenues from products contributing to the green economy.

Do you have a final message?

I really think Mongolia is a fantastic opportunity and we would be happy to do more work there. Apart from selling subscriptions to our products and delivering our expert services, we are also looking at selective asset participation. In that sense, we are ready to work more as a partner rather than simply a service provider.