Lindian bolsters leadership team to drive Malawi rare earths project

Lindian Resources has bolstered its leadership team with Robert Martin leaping into the hot seat as its new executive chairman and Teck Lim joining as chief financial officer, as the company drives forward its globally significant Kangankunde rare earths project in the southeastern African country of Malawi. 

Lim is a highly experienced mining executive with a background in the company’s two focussed commodities - rare earths and bauxite. He previously held the CFO role with ASX-listed Hastings Technology Metals and led a joint venture with Andrew “Twiggy” Forrest’s Wyloo, part of the Tattarang group, which in February announced a 60:40 joint venture over Hastings’ Yangibana rare earths-niobium project.

Lim previously worked as the lead director in Perth at KPMG Corporate Finance managing the mining and project finance advisory business and held senior roles at ING Bank, HSBC Bank and Deloitte within their respective resources portfolios.

Martin, the current non-executive chairman, is transitioning to the executive chairman role and will manage key government, community and stakeholder relationships while keeping a watchful eye on corporate governance.   

The company’s priority is to secure financing for the impressive high-grade tier-one Kangankunde project by year’s end.

To further its push to develop the project, the company also recently welcomed experienced corporate financial advisor Henk Ludik to help identify and recommend funding solutions and explore a flurry of interest from multiple parties looking to participate in the project’s financing.

He is set to focus on converting its non-binding US$50 million (A$79m) stage-one funding deal with United States-based commodity trader Gerald Metals Group into a binding agreement.

Lindian has also anointed a recent addition to the board, Zekai (Zac) Komur, to establish and chair a project delivery and technical committee for Kangankunde. And former Anglo American and Sierra Rutile construction manager Daniel Britz has joined the company as site construction manager. 

The Kangankunde project contains a massive 261 million tonnes grading a superb 2.14 per cent total rare earth oxides. The magnet rare earths neodymium and praseodymium comprise 20.3 per cent of the project’s total rare earths.

The high-value magnet rare earths outlined within the project are a truly stunning 1.1mt. Today’s price of about US$56,000 (A$88,000) per tonne of neodymium and praseodymium provides an indication of the value of magnet rare earths within the Kangankunde project.

Lindian also remains focussed on pushing ahead with its bauxite assets in the West African country of Guinea. It signed a binding lease agreement and royalty deed in November with Guinea-based Enterprise Generale d’Entretien & Construction and Lancinet Dabo (together the lessees) for them to have a 10-year lease agreement and operating rights over the Woula bauxite project in Guinea.

The lessees have committed to eventually pumping out 2mt of bauxite per annum at Woula, with Lindian to receive a royalty of between US$1 per tonne to US$2 per tonne, depending on the ownership structure of the producing entity. The royalty payments will continue for the life of bauxite production from the tenements.

The company believes it has now assembled the basis of a great management team, with further appointments where relevant, to move Lindian into a future rare earths stratosphere and sit levels above fellow producers. 

Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact: matt.birney@businessnews.com.au