Prior to joining Southern Cross Gold, Mr Austerberry served as Chief Operating Officer at Alkane Resources, which included responsibility for the Costerfield underground gold–antimony mine in Victoria. Previous to this appointment, he held a series of senior operational roles, including General Manager of Operations at the Costerfield Mine, where he was instrumental in the mine’s expansion and modernisation, and General Manager of the Björkdal Mine in Sweden. Mr Austerberry also previously held the role of Corporate Manager Technical Services at Mandalay Resources and served as a Non-Executive Director of Equus Mining Limited between 2021 and 2023. His extensive operational experience spans multiple jurisdictions including Australia and Sweden, with expertise across both development and production stages of mining, driving strategic growth and operational excellence. Mr. Austerberry holds a Bachelor of Applied Science from RMIT University, a Postgraduate Diploma in Mining from the University of Ballarat, and an MBA from the Australian Institute of Business. He is a Chartered Professional in Mining with the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy and a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.