Corporate

Mr. Ridgway is a successful prospector and mining financier, gaining his initial experience with grass roots mineral exploration. Starting out as a prospector in the Yukon Territory in the 70’s, Simon and the teams under his guidance have discovered gold deposits in Honduras, Guatemala and Nicaragua and silver deposits in Mexico. Simon is a founder of Fortuna Silver Mines and Radius Gold, and the CEO of Volcanic Gold Mines.

Mr. Garagan is a geologist with a Bachelor of Science (Honours) degree in geology from the University of Ottawa and over 40 years of experience working in North and South America, East and West Africa and Russia.  He is a founder of B2Gold Corp. (NYSE:BTG, TSX:BTO) and recently retired after serving as Senior Vice President, Exploration of B2Gold since 2007.  Prior to that, he was Vice President of Exploration of Bema Gold.  Mr. Garagan is a founding Director of BeMetals Corp. (TSX-V:BMET) and has served as a director and/or officer of several other public companies operating in the resource sector.

Mr. Katzin is a graduate of the University of Cape Town, South Africa with a Bachelor of Commerce and Law degree. He is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of British Columbia. He has been a partner in private practice with a Vancouver firm of Chartered Accountants since 1986 and has experience working with resource and exploration companies.

Mr. Beale holds a Bachelor’s degree in Geology from the University of London and a Master’s degree in Mineral Exploration from the Royal School of Mines in London. He has over 35 years of experience managing exploration and development programs for major and junior mining corporations. Mr. Beale is joint owner and a director of a private consulting company, and is a director of one other publicly-traded resource company.

With a MSc degree in Mineral Exploration and Mining Geology, Mr. Cass has over 25 years international exploration and mining industry experience in many countries including the America’s, Australia, Turkey, Iran, South Africa and Eastern Europe. He spent 15 years with Anglo American, including 6 years as Exploration Manager of North America, and 4 years managing Anglo’s programs in Peru. Mr. Cass is a member of the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of British Columbia, and a Fellow of the Society of Economic Geologists.

Mr. Reinson is a mining executive with over 25 years of experience in project development, engineering, operations, and leadership. He previously served as Vice President of Operations at Burgundy Diamond Mines, overseeing the Ekati Diamond Mine, and as Chief Operating Officer at First Mining Gold Corp. He is currently Senior Vice President of Development at Li-FT Power Ltd. His career includes senior leadership roles with major mining companies such as Goldcorp, Newmont, and Rio Tinto. Mr. Reinson holds both a Master of Science and Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of Saskatchewan.

Mr. Gruner is a senior executive with extensive experience in Indigenous business leadership, mining, infrastructure, energy, and economic development across Northern Canada. Mr. Gruner currently serves as Chief Executive Officer of Tlicho Investment Corporation, the economic arm of the Tlicho First Nation. He previously served as Chief Executive Officer of Det’on Cho Management LP, the economic development arm of the Yellowknives Dene First Nation, and as Chief Executive Officer of the Tahltan Nation Development Corporation, the business arm of the Tahltan Nation. In these roles, Mr. Gruner has led major Indigenous-owned businesses involved in mining services, infrastructure, logistics, construction, energy, and community economic development.

Ms. Lee is a professional geoscientist with over 20 years of experience in northern Canada, spanning mineral exploration, mining operations, environmental management, Indigenous relations, and ESG. She spent 10 years at the Ekati Diamond Mine, where she was responsible for health, safety and environmental operations, as well as Indigenous benefit agreements and relationships with Indigenous, territorial, and federal governments.

In 2021, Claudine joined Canadian Zinc as VP of Corporate Social Responsibility, leading impact benefit agreement negotiations and ESG programs focused on delivering sustainable mining projects and meaningful benefits for Indigenous partners.

She holds an MSc in Geology/Environmental Geochemistry from Queen’s University and an Honours BSc in Geology and Environmental Science from the University of Western Ontario, and is a registered Professional Geoscientist in British Columbia and the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.