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Great Western Minerals Group announced the appointment of David Kennedy to the position of Chief Executive Officer of GWMG’s 100%-owned subsidiary Rare Earth Extraction Co. Limited.
Mr. Kennedy, a co-founder of Less Common Metals in 1992, has served as GWMG’s Managing Director, Metals and Alloys, since the Company acquired LCM in 2008. He is a graduate in Metallurgy, a Chartered Engineer and is a Professional Member of the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining. In his role as CEO of Rareco, Mr. Kennedy, who remains a Director of GWMG, will have overall responsibility for the development, commissioning and operation of GWMG's Steenkampskraal rare earth mining operation. GWMG also announced the appointment of Ian Higgins to the position of Managing Director, Metals and Alloys, with overall responsibility for LCM and Great Western Technologies Inc. Dr. Higgins, who holds a Ph. D. in Materials Science, is a highly experienced rare earth technical expert who joined LCM in 2001. He has been responsible for the day-to-day operations of LCM as well as procurement of rare earth materials from China. Additionally, GWMG announced the appointment of David Murphy as Commercial Director of LCM. Mr. Murphy, who has over thirty years of experience in the rare earths sector with LCM, and previously with Johnson Matthey Rare Earth Products where he was General Manager, is responsible for sales, marketing and customer support at LCM. All appointments are effective immediately. GWMG President and Chief Executive Officer Jim Engdahl said, "These appointments significantly strengthen our management team and our corporate structure. The appointment of David Kennedy as CEO of Rareco means that our South African operations will be guided by one of the most highly experienced people in the global rare earth industry. Mr. Kennedy's background will serve Rareco exceptionally well as he focuses on the Steenkampskraal operation as a future supply source for our alloy processing operations. The appointment of Mr. Kennedy as the CEO of Rareco was facilitated by the extensive experience of Ian Higgins and David Murphy as they assume positions of greater responsibility with LCM." |
