Investment adviser Appian Capital has appointed Dominic Raab as senior strategic adviser on global affairs.

In this newly created role, he will support Appian on geopolitical strategy and risk, building on his international experience gained in UK government.

Raab will work closely with Appian’s senior leadership team to provide insight and advice on prospective and current investments across the company’s portfolio and will also advise Appian on government and public affairs, specifically critical minerals policies across the key markets where Appian operates.

He has been a UK Member of Parliament since 2010, having held a number of senior roles in government including Deputy Prime Minister, Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, and Minister of State for Housing.

Raab is a qualified solicitor and holds an undergraduate law degree from the University of Oxford and a Master of Law from the University of Cambridge.

Further, Appian has also formed a partnership with SAFE’s Centre for Critical Minerals Strategy, an organisation of military and business stakeholders focused on the intersection of energy policy and national security.

The partnership takes the form of a SAFE-Appian subcommittee on opportunities and risks in the critical mineral sector, chaired by Raab and comprised of other commercial experts in the critical minerals sector alongside Appian.

The partnership will advise SAFE on the regulatory, fiscal and financial conditions required for successful critical minerals operations.

It is expected to provide policy makers with an independent view on risk levels and viability of projects for funding, aimed at ensuring better capital and resource allocation to maximise the chance of bringing projects into production.

The partnership will also develop a scorecard to help decision-makers evaluate the wide range of potential critical minerals sites and provide a short-list of the most viable targets.

This will set out a project risk matrix, including technical, financial, jurisdictional and environmental, social and governance benchmarks to create an overall score and more granular assessment.

The scorecard will be presented as part of a report, ‘Resources for Resources: Bridging Government and Private Finance for Secure Mineral Development’, which will compare the different types of public sector tools available and evaluate whether they sufficiently consider the risks and opportunities identified in the scorecard.

The partnership builds on prior transparency work by analysing risks and opportunities for securing and diversifying sources of critical minerals and their wider supply chains to bring energy transition projects into production, Appian says.

“Dominic is a fantastic addition to the Appian team at what is an exciting and important time for our business. He brings a wealth of geopolitical experience gained at the highest levels of government, coupled with deep understanding of private and public sector partnerships, which will be instrumental in expanding Appian’s relationships and driving our next phase of growth.

“The partnership with SAFE is an important development for energy security and a ringing endorsement of both Appian and Dominic’s appointment. I look forward to continuing our work to support the energy transition through developing independent and secure supplies of critical minerals,” says Appian CEO and founder Michael W Scherb.

“I am excited to join the dynamic team at Appian to further the company’s strategic objectives in critical minerals. I look forward to helping Appian expand international partnerships between investors and governments, so we can better navigate the geopolitical risks and secure the supply chains our economies need for the twenty-first century,” Raab says.