Richmond Vanadium Technology Ltd has put non-executive director Jon Price in place as managing director, following the pending retirement of Dr Shaun Ren.
Ren’s reign as MD will come to an end on June 30 and the company has appointed a highly experienced mining veteran to fill his shoes.
Price is a 30-year veteran and was most recently the MD of Horizon Minerals Ltd (ASX:HRZ).
He holds an Environmental Science Degree from Griffith University in Brisbane, postgraduate qualifications in Extractive Metallurgy and a Masters in Mineral Economics from the Western Australian School of Mines. He is highly experienced in precious and critical minerals from exploration, development, plant construction, operations and corporate.
Other than Horizon, Price has held senior management and executive positions with small and multi-national companies including Gold Fields Ltd and Phoenix Gold.
He is a member of the AusIMM and AICD and served six years as board member and chair of the Goldfields-Esperance Development Commission promoting regional economic growth.
“I look forward to commencing as managing director of RVT during an important time in the company’s evolution," Price said.
"I am particularly excited about what the company can achieve in 2023, with the bankable feasibility study and Environmental Impact Statement both progressing at the Richmond Vanadium Project.”
Vanadium is a critical mineral
Dr Ren leaves Richmond Vanadium in a strong position, having recognised vanadium as a critical mineral that can play a pivotal role in the commercialisation of renewable energy.
He identified the huge potential of the Richmond Vanadium Project in North Queensland as the largest non-titanomagnetite vanadium deposit of its kind (soft marine sediments) globally.
Under Dr Ren’s leadership, RVT partnered with two specialist research institutes to aggressively pursue the metallurgical solution which had evaded previous research.
Although he is stepping away from the MD’s position, Dr Ren will still play a role with the company as a non-executive director. He will also remain as RVT’s representative on the board of Ultra Power Systems Limited.
Non-executive chair Brendon Grylls acknowledged Dr Ren’s influence in his time in the position of MD.
“We thank Shaun for his expertise, dedication and invaluable contribution to the growth of our business, including recently as the managing director of the company’s Initial Public Offering in late 2022. We wish Shaun and his family all the very best for their next endeavours,” Grylls said.
Grylls believes Price is the right man to lead Richmond Vanadium into the future.
“We are delighted to appoint Jon as the new managing director of RVT. As a metallurgist with a Masters in Mineral Economics, he brings with him a deep understanding of the project and a passionate advocacy to build a new industry for Australia.
“With the world facing unprecedented change and looking towards renewable energy to combat the effects of climate change, we believe that Jon is the ideal candidate to build on Shaun’s work and lead RVT through the next phase of its journey.
“I am confident that under Jon’s leadership, RVT will be at the forefront of Australia’s vanadium processing transformation and will continue to create value for shareholders.”
Into the future
Dr Ren has also endorsed Price and has called his time leading the company a great honour.
“It has been a huge honour to lead the dedicated team at RVT in bringing the Richmond Vanadium Project to its current status. As this world-class project moves through the development phase, I am keenly aware that the company needs people of different experience to lead the project.
“Jon, with his extensive project development experience in the mining industry, is the ideal person to lead the company through its next phase of development.
"I retire as managing director with the confidence that my replacement will take the company and project to the next level. I am excited to see this huge vanadium deposit progress through development and towards production in the coming years.”