Appointment of Non-Executive Chairman
Perth, Aug 15, 2018 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Australian Potash Limited (
ASX:APC) (Company) is pleased to advise the appointment of experienced mining industry executive and director Mr James (Jim) Walker to the role of Non-Executive Chairman of the Company. Mr Matt Shackleton, formerly Executive Chairman, has been appointed Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer.
Mr Walker has 45 years' experience in the resources industry, at both senior management and board level. Prior to retiring from the position in 2013, Jim was the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of WesTrac Pty Ltd, during which time that company enjoyed significant expansion across Australia and into north-east China.
From January 2015 through to July 2015, Jim performed the Executive Chairman's role at Macmahon Holdings Ltd (ASX:MAH) as that company sought a replacement CEO. Jim has been a member of the Macmahon board since 2013, and now serves in a non-executive capacity as Chair.
In addition to his role as Chairman at Macmahon, Mr Walker is Chairman of Austin Engineering Ltd (ASX:ANG), Wesley College and the State Training Board. He is Deputy Chairman of Seeing Machines Ltd (LON:SEE), RACWA Holdings Pty Ltd and the WA Motor Museum.
Previously, Mr Walker was a director of Seven Group Holdings Ltd and National Hire Group, and a past National President of the Australian Institute of Management.
Mr Shackleton commented: "Our Company has reached an important stage in the development of the Lake Wells SOP Project and it is now appropriate for the roles of Chair and Managing Director to be separated. We continue to develop marketing and financing relationships around the Project and the board are unanimous in the view that an independent, Non-Executive Chairman will provide great value to these relationships and to our shareholders more broadly.
"I look forward to working very closely with Jim over this next phase, as he imparts his experience and wisdom from a deep, varied and successful career to our Company.
"As Managing Director and CEO, I am also looking forward to dedicating my energy towards the finalisation of the Definitive Feasibility Study and the development of Lake Wells. We have a detailed 'road-map' of what we have to do across the four major work streams to get to where we need to be. It is an enormous boost to our plans to have someone of Jim's calibre join us as we take the final steps to reporting the results of the DFS in 2019."
About Australian Potash Ltd
Australian Potash Limited (ASX:APC) is an ASX-listed Sulphate of Potash (SOP) developer. The Company holds a 100% interest in the Lake Wells Potash Project located approximately 500kms northeast of Kalgoorlie, in Western Australia's Eastern Goldfields.
Following the release of a Scoping Study in 2017, APC has been conducting a Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS) into the development of the Lake Wells Potash Project. The Company is aiming to release the findings of the DFS in H2 2019.
The Lake Wells Potash Project is a palaeochannel brine hosted sulphate of potash project. Palaeochannel bore fields supply large volumes of brine to many existing mining operations throughout Western Australia, and this technique is a well understood and proven method for extracting brine. APC will use this technically low-risk and commonly used brine extraction model to further develop a bore-field into the palaeochannel hosting the Lake Wells SOP resource.
A Scoping Study on the Lake Wells Potash Project was completed and released on 23 March 2017. The Scoping Study exceeded expectations and confirmed that the Project's economic and technical aspects are all exceptionally strong, and highlights APC's potential to become a significant long-life, low capital and high margin sulphate of potash (SOP) producer.
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