SMABC Limited

Metals and Minerals Advisory

GCC | Africa

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Samad Mohammed

I am the founder of SMABC Limited, a mining finance and operations advisory based in Dubai, UAE.

I began my mining career as a business analyst at a Perth-headquartered mining company in Western Australia, where I recognised early that meaningful impact in this industry requires learning the business from the ground up. That meant spending time on-site across the ROM pad, crusher, plant floor, laboratories, and open-pit and underground operations — working closely with geologists, mine engineers, metallurgists, safety and environmental teams, HR, community relations, procurement and IT. This operating exposure shaped my belief that strong finance leadership begins with understanding how a mine truly works.

From mine accountant roles across the highlands of Papua New Guinea and outback mines in Kalgoorlie, to the deserts of Saudi Arabia's Medina region, I progressed to executive-committee-level leadership at Barrick Gold (TSX: ABX, NYSE: B) and Maaden (Saudi Exchange: 1211). My roles included Finance Manager (Site CFO) and Acting General/Operations Manager at the Jabal Sayid UG (underground) copper mine, Finance Operations Manager for Barrick's Africa and Middle East portfolio (supporting 7 mines), and Vice President of Finance for Maaden's Gold and Base Metals division, supporting 6 operating gold mines, where I also served on the Executive Committee of the Maaden Barrick Copper Company joint venture.

Across these roles, I worked alongside corporate finance, technical and deal teams to evaluate and support more than US$5.2 billion in capital investment, financing and M&A activity across gold and copper assets, applying disciplined, risk-adjusted return criteria when appraising new projects. This included supporting the evaluation of a new gold project (~300koz per annum) through feasibility and construction mandate, and a copper mine, where more than US$200 million in sustaining and growth capital delivered a 4x return.

I was also part of the team administering US$300 million Murabaha debt financing facilities and a US$25 million prepayment facility on despatched copper concentrate, and contributed to a US$1.25 billion Sukuk issuance. Over my career, I have led the evaluation and execution of more than 25 copper offtake agreements worth over US$3.2 billion with counterparties across Japan, India and Switzerland. I also contributed to the evaluation of a significant potential merger opportunity within the gold sector (never executed), and supported Life-of-Mine NAV assessments across the gold and copper portfolio. I have assessed several mine restart opportunities for iron ore and gold mines.

I am an Australian national holding a Bachelor's degree in Accounting from Curtin University of Technology in Western Australia. At the core of my practice is operational leadership delivered through open and honest dialogue — built to mutually benefit investors, employees and stakeholders.

CFO-as-a-Service

Embedded financial leadership — planning & analysis, board reporting, treasury and KPI design for mining and industrial operations.

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Mining Advisory

Investment evaluation, due diligence, offtake structuring and on-site operational assessment across the mine lifecycle.

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Capital Advisory

Capital sourcing, sovereign risk assessment, project bankability and deal structuring for funds and mining parties.

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