Director, President & CEO - M.Sc., P.Eng
Kerem Usenmez
Kerem Usenmez
Director, President & CEO - M.Sc., P.Eng
Kerem is a Geological Engineer with over 23 years of global experience in various technical and leadership roles with various companies including Inco (MB), and Amec Engineering.
Most recently he was the President and CEO of Metallum Resources where he acquired and advanced Canada’s highest grade Zn deposit, the Superior Lake Zinc & Copper Project. He founded Atom Bits diamond drilling bit manufacturer, which was recently acquired by a leading North American drilling products supplier. He is a member of the Board of Directors of the PDAC, where he Chairs the Securities and Public Affairs Committees. Kerem is a licensed Geological Engineer in Manitoba and Ontario.
Chief Financial Officer; CPA, CMA
Brad Boland
Brad Boland
Chief Financial Officer; CPA, CMA
Mr. Boland is an experienced mining finance executive with over 25 years of experience in the industry, holding positions such as VP Finance for Goldcorp, VP Controller for Kinross, CFO for Consolidated Thompson Iron Mines, and he is currently the CFO for Kiboko Gold Inc. He has contributed to securing more than $1 billion of combined equity, debt, and project financing for mining ventures.
Technical Advisor - Ph.D.
Dr. Fred Breaks
Dr. Fred Breaks
Technical Advisor - Ph.D.
Dr. Breaks, a lithium expert, discovered the two largest Lithium-rich rare element deposits (Li-Ta-Rb-Cs) in Ontario: Separation Rapids Pegmatite of Avalon Advanced Materials, and Pakeagama Lake Pegmatite of Frontier Lithium. He spent 29 years at the Ontario Geological Survey where he ran Operation Treasure Hunt and headed regional mapping project predominantly in LCT pegmatites, fertile Granites for Lithium and REE potential. He has an extensive experience with petrography, mineralogy, litho and mineral geochemistry of Archean shield rock types in a wide range of domain settings including greenstone rich belts. He has 118 publications at the Ontario Geological Survey and numerous external publications,. He is highly experienced in most deposit types in shield areas, including rare element pegmatites and related S-type peraluminous granites.
P.Eng., MBA, Advisor – Metallurgy
Alastair Neill
Alastair Neill, P.Eng., MBA
Mr. Neill has over 30 years of experience in rare earth material engineering, separation, processing, and sales to global markets. He holds a degree in Materials Engineering from Western University and an MBA from the Schulich School of Business at York University. His work in sourcing rare earth materials to and from China and managing joint ventures with Asian partners has made him a sought-after expert in the industry. He is currently a director for the Critical Minerals Institute (CMI) in Canada, and a director for Neoterrex Corporation (TSXV: NTX) and Nuinsco (NWI.CN). His experience also includes serving as Director of Business Development for Rare Earth Salts Separations and Refining, as Director at IBC Advanced Alloys (TSXV: IB) and Executive Vice President at Dacha Strategic Metals (formerly TSXV: DSM).
Advisor – Capital Markets
Steve Stakiw
Steve Stakiw
Mr. Stakiw is an experienced mining executive and geologist with over 30 years in the mining sector, specializing in capital markets. He was recently CEO of Element 29 Resources (TSXV: ECU) and Senior Vice President at New Pacific Metals Corp. (TSX: NUAG). Prior to that, he was Vice President of Investor Relations and part of the original team that successfully grew Trevali Mining Corp. from an exploration-stage company, through development, into a mid-tier base metal producer with four operating mines on three continents and over a $1-billion market capitalization. He has helped build and strengthen marketing programs and expand both retail and institutional investor networks.
Chair and Director - P. Geo
Dr. Mark Cruise
Dr. Mark Cruise
Chair and Director P. Geo
Mark is a professional geologist with over 25 years of international experience from exploration to production. He has co-founded and led several billion dollar TSX-V, TSX and NYSE-Americas listed exploration and mining companies. Mark is an independent director for Velocity Minerals, NiCAN Ltd and Bunker Hill Mining.
Director
Saga Williams
Saga Williams
Director
Ms. Williams is Anishinaabe, a member of Curve Lake First Nation, and is currently an elected official for her community. Ms. Williams, LLB has worked in Indigenous communities in government and corporate roles in the capacity of legal counsel, negotiations and governance, and as a strategic advisor, for over 20 years. Ms. Williams has been on negotiation teams that have successfully settled over $1 billion in agreements and has worked on Indigenous community engagement and negotiations to support national energy and mining projects. Ms. Williams teaches at Osgoode Hall Law School as an Adjunct Professor and supports student led negotiations focussing on consultation, Indigenous rights and reconciliation.
Director
Fady Mansour
Fady Mansour
Director
Mr. Mansour, J.D., is a Partner since 2020 of the Ottawa based criminal law firm Friedman Mansour, LLP. He has also been an Adjunct Professor in the Faculty of Common Law at the University of Ottawa since 2019. Since March 2023, Mr. Mansour has been the Managing Partner of Ethical Capital Partners, a private equity firm managed by a multi-disciplinary advisory team seeking investment and advisory opportunities in industries requiring principled ethical leadership. Mr. Mansour is a member of the Law Societies of Ontario, Alberta, and the Northwest Territories, having initially been called to the bar in 2016 after graduating from the University of Alberta Faculty of Law in 2015.
Director - ICD.D
Mike Hoffman
Mike Hoffman
Director ICD.D
Mr. Hoffman is currently Chair and Director at 1911 Gold and NiCAN Ltd. as well as a director of Velocity Minerals, Silver X Mining and Fury Gold. He is a mining executive with over 35 years of experience including engineering, mine operations, corporate development, projects and construction. Mr. Hoffman also has direct northern Canadian mining experience including operations and projects. He is the former CEO of Crowflight Minerals, Kria Resources and Crocodile Gold.
Director
Brad Humphrey
Brad H. Humphrey
Director
Mr. Humphrey has over 25 years of international mining experience. He worked for Morgan Stanley as an Executive Director and North American Precious Metals Analyst, where he was responsible for growing Morgan Stanley's North American Gold research coverage. Mr. Humphrey was also a Managing Director and Head of Mining Research at Raymond James and covered precious metal equities at CIBC World Markets and Merrill Lynch. Mr. Humphrey has held a variety of mining industry roles from contract underground miner to CEO. Mr. Humphrey is currently President and CEO of NiCAN Ltd. and sits on the board of Black Swan Graphene, and was the CEO of QMX Gold, which was acquired by Eldorado Gold.
