Firefinch Limited (ASX: FFX) has announced the appointment of Simon Hay as Managing Director of its lithium spin-off Leo Lithium , with effect from 10, January 2022.
Mr Hay is a high achieving minerals professional with extensive management and technical experience built up over a career spanning 30 years in Australia and internationally.
Most recently he was CEO of ASX-listed lithium company, Galaxy Resources Limited. The culmination of his role as CEO was the recent A$5 billion merger of equals with Orocobre Limited, to create the fifth largest lithium producer globally.
Under Mr Hay’s leadership the company’s hard rock spodumene mine in Western Australia achieved consistent and record production rates, and the Sal de Vida lithium brine project in Argentina advanced from feasibility into construction.
Mr Hay has an astute knowledge of the lithium market and is well regarded in the capital markets for having created value at Galaxy. Prior to this, as Head of Resource Development for Iluka Resources Limited, Mr Hay was responsible for exploration and geology, mine planning and development, major projects and engineering, technology and innovation functions for Iluka’s portfolio of projects. This included building two mineral sands concentrators in Sierra Leone, West Africa, managing a capital budget of ~A$400 million per annum and a workforce of approximately 200.
During his 10-year tenure at Iluka, Mr Hay gained considerable Chinese metals market experience, having managed Asian and then global zircon sales and marketing from Shanghai and Singapore. In addition to his broad functional experience in executive and management roles, Mr Hay’s technical experience covers functions of smelting, refining, project commissioning and life cycle of capital works across various commodities.
Mr Hay holds a Bachelor of Science with Honours (Chemistry) and a Master of Applied Science (Metallurgy) from the University of Melbourne.
“We welcome Simon to the Firefinch/Leo Lithium team and are thrilled to have such a high-calibre individual join the Company as we progress the demerger of the Goulamina Lithium Project and development of this world-class project. Simon brings a proven track record for execution and value creation in the lithium sector, and a deep understanding of West African mining projects. Simon is highly regarded in the industry and among the investment community and we are delighted with his appointment,” Firefinch’s Chairman, Dr Alistair Cowden, said.
For further information please visit: https://firefinchltd.com/
