Flanagan to leave AROSE chair role

Ousted Delta Lithium chair turned Arrow Minerals managing director David Flanagan has retired from his position at the Australian Remote Operations for Space and Earth (AROSE) consortium.

Mr Flanagan will take one small step away from AROSE, where he has served as chair for four years, but will continue in a strategic advisory capacity.

With Mr Flanagan as chair, AROSE was awarded stage one responsibility for the design, build, testing and operation of an Australian-made lunar rover for NASA’s upcoming Artemis moon mission.

His chair position will be filled by Sydney-based Telstra group managing director Deena Shiff – previously a board member at Infrastructure Australia and Export Finance Australia.

Atlas Iron founder Mr Flanagan, who was recently appointed as managing director of Arrow after being moved on from Delta Lithium following its acquisition by Mineral Resources, said he was proud of the growth of AROSE over his four years.

“It has been hugely gratifying to see AROSE grow in reputation and importance to Australia’s space sector, and as an accelerator of remote operations technology and expertise across industry,” he said.

“Future generations are relying on us to create the opportunities they need to enjoy fulfilled and prosperous lives.

“The AROSE consortium is also building pathways for students to pursue diverse careers at home in robotics and automation.”

AROSE is funded and led by a number of industry partners, with the support of the Department of Jobs, Tourism, Science and Innovation.

WA Minister for Science Stephen Dawson thanked Mr Flanagan for his work and welcomed Ms Shiff into the organisation.

“We welcome Deena to this important role as chair of AROSE and thank David for his great service helping establish the AROSE consortium as a leader in Australian remote operations for space and on earth,” he said.

AROSE was founded in 2019 by former astronaut Pam Melroy, who is now a deputy administrator at NASA.

In July last year, Mr Flanagan credited Colonel Melroy with sparking his interest in the role despite limited exposure to the space sector.

Ms Shiff said it was a great honour to follow in his footsteps.

“I believe that Australia is ideally placed to combine its expertise in robotics and automation in remote environments by applying it in space and deep sea,” she said.

“The AROSE consortium has brought together industry and researchers to spearhead the development and deployment of these exciting operations and applications.”

AROSE is one of two Australian consortiums working on early-stage rover concepts to land on the moon as part of NASA’s Artemis II mission, recently reported to have been pushed back to late 2025.