Money alone won’t get a mine or refinery running. Someone has to test every system and hand it over cleanly. That job sits at the heart of mining project management, and a new Fast Starters report suggests the sector is short of people who can do it. The report, published on 10 November 2026, profiles three young companies filling gaps in mining, energy and utilities.
Ante Ljubicic is one of those founders. He runs Perth-based Dravus, which he started in 2023. Before that, he spent more than a decade on completions and commissioning. He worked on iron ore, lithium and infrastructure projects. Over those years, he saw a gap that few firms were filling.
Dravus has grown fast. It ranks 18th on the Fast Starters list and is the Industry Growth Champion in agriculture, mining and utilities. Its compound annual growth rate is about 614 per cent. Revenue went from around $495,500 in the 2023-24 financial year to about $25.27 million in 2025-26.
Mining Project Development Needs Dedicated Handover Teams
Mining project development tends to hit trouble late. Designers and builders finish their part. Then the many contractors involved must show everything works together. Ljubicic calls commissioning and handover one of the most critical stages of any project. He wants it treated as a genuine discipline, “not an afterthought” tacked onto a larger contract. Dravus’s approach rests on a few ideas:
- A dedicated team drives early planning and stakeholder engagement.
- Completions and commissioning get their own focus.
- The company has supported battery-grade lithium hydroxide refineries.
- It has also worked on iron ore process plant infrastructure.
Hiring is the toughest part. Ljubicic says Australia and Western Australia have plenty of work lined up. Experienced people to deliver it are scarce. Commissioning is more specialised again, so the squeeze is tighter. Costs keep rising, and commodity prices swing. Owners want output as soon as possible, which puts safe and efficient start-ups under the microscope.
Commissioning is the stage where years of planning, design and construction are tested and proven. [UNISYS ENGINEERING]
Mining Project Delays Can Start With Land and Access
Mining project delays don’t always begin on site. Sometimes they begin with a signature on a lease. Canberra is pouring billions of dollars into solar and wind projects, and developers need land for them. Rela, founded in 2022, runs an online platform that connects landowners with those developers. Its growth has been steep:
- Revenue rose from about $462,500 in the 2023-24 financial year to $5.2 million in 2025-26.
- The team has fewer than 20 employees.
- Its compound annual growth rate is about 235 per cent.
- Rela Assess gives an independent view of land viability and shows owners where infrastructure can and cannot go.
- Rela Connect lets landowners take land to market and meet developers.
Michael Katz is Rela’s CEO. He co-founded the company with friends Stuart Gourley and Eran Rimmer. In his view, landowners were making long-term decisions with patchy information, and little say over outcomes. Rela also works in the United Kingdom.
Funds managed by Oaktree Capital Management and Macquarie Asset Management back it. This year it bought a 14-lease portfolio there. Its prepay product pays landowners a lump sum upfront. They keep ownership of their land.
Last year, Rela won the customer experience category at the Financial Review Energy Awards. Katz hopes that within five years every landowner and adviser can deal with the market fully informed.
Rope Access Keeps Industrial Assets Safe
RIGG|SAFE Industrial Rope Access also made this year’s Fast 100 list. Ben Turnbull started the company in 2023 and is its managing director. Its clients come from infrastructure, agriculture, construction and manufacturing. The crews handle rope access, rigging, rescue plans, project management and risk assessment.
The business is accredited by the Industrial Rope Access Trade Association. That body has more than 700 member companies worldwide. Turnbull says he values hard work and doing what he promises. He also says he won’t gatekeep information or opportunity.
How the Pipeline Can Avoid Costly Setbacks
None of the three founders claims a magic fix. Their advice is practical, though, and owners and contractors could act on it now:
- Bring a commissioning team in early, well before construction ends.
- Train new commissioning professionals to ease the skills gap.
- Give landowners independent data before they sign long-term deals.
- Use accredited crews for work in hard-to-reach places.
Ljubicic has a five-year target. He wants Dravus to be the go-to completions, commissioning and operation readiness partner across Western Australia and beyond. Mining project management will be central to that plan. For investors watching the pipeline, delivery may matter as much as the funding behind it.
Also Read: Commonwealth Boosts Investment ($200 million) in Rare Earth Mining Project Backed by Gina Rinehart
Frequently Asked Questions
Q1: Who started Dravus, and how big has it got?
A1: Ante Ljubicic set it up in Perth in 2023, after years of commissioning iron ore and lithium sites. Revenue went from around $495,500 in 2023-24 to about $25.27 million in 2025-26, which is quite a leap.
Q2: Why do commissioning teams matter?
A2: Because that’s when everything built over years is finally put to the test. With experienced people hard to find, Ljubicic argues the planning has to start early.
Q3: Is Rela only an Australian business?
A3: No, it also operates in the United Kingdom. Revenue hit $5.2 million in 2025-26, and the compound annual growth rate is about 235 per cent.
Q4: What kind of work does RIGG|SAFE take on?
A4: Think rope access, rigging, rescue plans and risk assessment for hard-to-reach industrial sites. It’s accredited by the Industrial Rope Access Trade Association, which lists more than 700 member companies worldwide.
Disclaimer:
This report relies on figures published in a 10 November 2026 Fast Starters feature. We haven’t checked Dravus, Rela or RIGG|SAFE’s numbers ourselves. Nothing here is investment, legal or project advice. Growth like this can stall, so don’t read it as a forecast. Talk to the companies and a qualified adviser first, before you commit any money or sign contracts.
Luke Carlino is a seasoned Copywriter, Content Strategist, and Social Media Manager specialising in Mining, Finance, and Business journalism. With more than a decade of industry experience, he brings rigorous editorial standards and commercial acuity to every project.
