
Encourages students to think critically.
Always prepared and organized for students.
Encourages students to explore new ideas.
Creates a collaborative and inclusive space.
Makes learning engaging and enjoyable.
Professor Colin Roberts serves as an Adjunct Professor in the Western Australian School of Mines: Minerals, Energy and Chemical Engineering and Petroleum Engineering Department at Curtin University. He earned his B.Eng in Mining Engineering from the Western Australian School of Mines at Curtin University, along with a Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice, a Juris Doctor, a Postgraduate Diploma in International Commercial Arbitration from Queen Mary University of London, and an LL.M in Resources Law & Policy from the University of Dundee. Possessing over 50 years of multi-disciplinary experience in the resources sector, he currently holds positions as Chairman of Salternas Ltd and Salternas GmbH, Director of Natural Resource Geo-Strategy, Resource Dispute Resolution, and Chairman of the Centre for International Dispute Resolution. His previous appointments include General Manager/Partner at RSG Global/Coffey Mining, Managing Director of Stanley Mining Services—a NASDAQ-listed subsidiary operating in 30 African countries—Honorary Investment Counsellor for Australia in Pakistan's Prime Minister’s Secretariat (2007–2015), and Adviser to the Commonwealth Secretariat in London.
Professor Roberts specializes in resources policy, sovereign risk mitigation, international commercial and investment arbitration, alternative dispute resolution, natural resource exploration and exploitation, feasibility studies, major project development, foreign direct investment in the developing world, international trade and investment law, transnational business, competition law, law of the sea, governance, and globalisation. He has served as Director of the LLM Programme in International Dispute Resolution and Management, MBA Programme in Resource Management, Leader of the Africa Programme, Deputy Director, and Commercial Director at the University of Dundee’s Centre for Energy, Petroleum and Mineral Law and Policy. Key contributions include co-authoring the International Bar Association Rules on Investor-State Mediation, mediating a US$311 million investor-state claim, negotiating FDI projects valued at US$5 billion and US$18 billion, and participating in Sudan peace negotiations. Among his honors are the AusIMM Tertiary Scholarship, the Eur.Ing. title, and fellowships including FAusIMM(CPMan), FCIArb, FIMMM. He has held leadership roles such as past President of the Mining Institute of Scotland, AusIMM-WA, and Society of Petroleum Engineers-WA.
