Mr Keevers’ experience includes advancing multiple producing mines from discovery phase through development, including the Telfer gold and copper mine, the Phosphate Hill phosphate mine and the Baal Gammon copper mine. Mr Keevers also was a substantial shareholder of and served as an executive director for Pembroke Josephson Wright Limited, an Australian share brokerage firm. Mr Keevers has served on boards of several ASX-listed resource and industrial companies, and he is currently a non- executive director of Santana Minerals Limited. Prior to joining the Renascor board in July of this year, Mr Keevers served as chairman of unlisted Eyre Peninsula Minerals Proprietary Limited (EPM).
David Christensen
Managing Director
David Christensen is an experienced mining executive, with recent successful experience managing exploration, mining and marketing operations. Prior to founding the Company, David served as Chief Executive Officer of Adelaide‑based companies, Heathgate Resources Pty Ltd and Quasar Resource Pty Ltd. While at Heathgate and Quasar, his responsibilities included overseeing Australian operations, including the Beverley uranium mine, as well as the expansion into new projects with the discovery and development of the Four Mile deposit and numerous joint ventures. David’s experience also includes serving as President of Nuclear Fuels Corporation, a trading and marketing company, where he managed a multi‑million dollar uranium portfolio and was responsible for developing sales strategy, executing trades and swaps and negotiating all contracts. David commenced his career as an attorney in California and London offices of international law firm Latham & Watkins, where he advised on corporate finance and mergers and acquisitions. David was educated at Cornell University (BA, Economics and Classical Civilizations), the University of California, Los Angeles (JD) and the Universitá di Bologna (Fulbright Fellow).
Geoff McConachy
Non-Executive Director
Geoffrey McConachy is an accomplished geologist with over thirty years of Australian and international experience in the mining industry assessing a wide range of commodities. Prior to joining the Company, Geoffrey worked for Heathgate Resources Pty Ltd and Quasar Resources Pty Ltd, where his roles included Managing Director, Exploration. While at Heathgate and Quasar, Geoffrey led the exploration and development team in the discovery, definition and evaluation of four uranium deposits including the Four Mile deposit, for which he was co-honoured with the Prospector of the Year award from the Australian Association of Mining & Exploration Companies. His experience includes instrumental roles in the discovery of the Fosterville gold deposit in Victoria and the Potosi base metal deposit in New South Wales. Geoffrey is a fellow of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy and a former Director of the Uranium Information Centre.
Stephen Bizzell
Non-Executive Director
Stephen is Chairman of boutique corporate advisory and funds management group Bizzell Capital Partners. He has over 25 years corporate finance and public company management experience in the resources sector in Australia and Canada. Stephen was previously an Executive Director of Arrow Energy from 1999 until its acquisition in 2010 by Royal Dutch Shell and PetroChina for $3.5 billion. Stephen was instrumental in Arrow’s corporate and commercial success and its growth from a junior explorer to a large integrated energy company. Stephen spent his early career in the corporate finance division of Ernst & Young and the tax division of Coopers & Lybrand and qualified as a Chartered Accountant. He is also a former director of Queensland Treasury Corporation. During the past three years Stephen has also served as a Director of the following ASX listed companies: Laneway Resources Ltd (since 1996), Stanmore Coal Ltd (2009 to 2020), Armour Energy Ltd (since 2012), UIL Energy Ltd (2014 to 2018) and Strike Energy Limited (since 2018).
Kathryn Presser
Non-Executive Director
Kathryn Presser has over 30 years’ experience in executive roles, having worked in several industries including resources, aviation, hospitality, banking and finance, and accounting advisory and audit firms where she has had extensive experience in the management of financial transactions, risk management and strategic planning. Notably, Kathryn has over 20 years’ experience in ASX Top 200 listed Oil and Gas Company, Beach Energy, as the CFO/Company Secretary where she directed large financing transactions, major capital raisings and a number of mergers and acquisitions. Ms Presser serves in a number of Non-Executive roles including the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) and the National Reconstruction Fund Corporation (NRFC) since 2023 as well as the Police Credit Union, Funds SA, Walford Anglican School for Girls Foundation and is the Chair of the Risk and Performance Committee for the SA Department of Treasury and Finance. Kathryn is a member of the International Women’s Federation, a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Company Secretaries, a Fellow of the Governance Institute of Australia, a Fellow of the Certified Practising Accounting Association and a Fellow of the Institute of Company Directors. She has recently been awarded the Order of Australia (AM) in the 2022 Australia Day Awards for her commitment to accounting and community.
Secretary
Pierre Van Der Merwe
Joint Company Secretary
Pierre is an accountant of more than 30 years’ experience with extensive knowledge in the provision of corporate secretarial and accounting services to ASX listed companies. He also has experience as CFO and was a Partner from 2004 to 2016 in HLB Mann Judd, an Australasian and International accountancy and business advisory group. During this time, he headed the Corporate Team in Adelaide which provides corporate secretarial and accounting services to a host of ASX listed companies in various industries, specialising in exploration and mining entities. Pierre was company secretary of the following ASX listed companies, amongst others: • Bondi Mining Ltd (ASX ‘BOM’) which changed it’s name to World Titanium Resources Ltd • Papyrus Australia Ltd (ASX ‘PPY’) • Terramin Australia Ltd (ASX ‘TZN’) during its transition from exploration to mining at its Strathalbyn site He spent part of 2016 and 2017 assisting an unlisted public company, 1414 Degrees Ltd, as company secretary with its preparation for IPO on the ASX (Listed 10 September 2018 at market capitalisation of $46m – ASX ‘14D’).
Jon Colquhoun
Joint Company Secretary
Jon is an experienced accountant and company secretary with a broad financial and commercial background across a range of industries providing company secretarial and CFO services to a number of ASX listed and unlisted companies. Mr Colquhoun holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Adelaide, is a Registered Company Auditor and a member of Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand.
Management Team
Simon Ballestrin
General Manager – Project Development
Simon is a Chemical Engineer with over eighteen years’ practical experience gained across a wide variety of management, design, consulting and operational roles in mineral processing environments and complex process industries. Simon has a proven track record in adding value to operating, technical and project management roles, able to motivate stakeholders to deliver outcomes throughout any stage of the project lifecycle which are aligned with the overall business and project strategy.
Simon has applied his professional and technical capability with a well-balanced commercial aptitude in project management, engineering management, metallurgy, process engineering, risk assessment, commissioning and operating roles for greenfield and brownfield projects at various operational sites across Australia. He has CP accreditation as a Member of the AusIMM and led the commissioning and operations teams that permitted, constructed, commissioned and operated Australia’s fourth uranium mine, the Honeymoon Uranium Mine.
Tom Walch
General Manager – Contracts and Procurement
Tom has been working in mining and construction industry for more than 15 years and has major projects experience in working for both contractors and owners in oil and gas and mining projects.
Tom began his career as a legal practitioner, working in private practice law firms and in-house roles throughout Australia. He has gained vast legal and commercial experience working in multiple jurisdictions across the globe, throughout the United States, Asia, and Australia.
Prior to joining Renascor, Tom held senior commercial roles for OZ Minerals and BHP where he was responsible for the development and deployment of contracting, commercial and risk management strategies throughout the entire project lifecycle (study, execution, commissioning and handover phases) for the Carrapateena Project, and subsequently, for the study and execution phases of the West Musgrave Project.
Kathleen McHugh
Finance Manager
Kathleen is a Chartered Accountant with over 10 years’ corporate and commercial experience in the resources industry. Prior to joining Renascor, Kathleen was the Finance Manager at Core Lithium during the company’s transition from exploration company through to construction and commencement of production of its lithium mine. Kathleen also held senior management roles with an international accounting firm specialising in the provision of accounting advisory and assurance services, primarily focusing on publicly listed companies within the natural resources sector.
Lin Zhou
Principal Metallurgist
Lin is an experienced metallurgist with over 15 years of Australian and international experience in the mining industry assessing a wide range of commodities, including graphite, copper, molybdenum, gold/silver, lead/zinc, nickel, cobalt, tungsten, iron ore, lithium and kaolin/HPA. Lin completed a Bachelor and Master of Chemical Engineering prior to completing his PhD (Mineral Processing) at the Ian Wark Research Institute, University of South Australia. He has worked as a metallurgist for various testing companies and mining companies. Lin has extensive experience in graphite ore processing (both upstream and downstream) and marketing. Lin is a member of the Australian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy.
Peter Jones
Senior Project Advisor
Peter has over thirty years’ experience in the design, build and EPC sector as a technical expert, design, procurement, and implementation manager in a career progression that has taken him from Tradesman through to Project Director.
His technical experience is based in EPC engineering with skills in front end engineering design (FEED) and project controls, estimating and cost control and management of multi-disciplinary project teams related to process design, layouts, SMP, E&I design, equipment selection and procurement, tender documentation and execution readiness. Peter’s expertise extends to renewables, resources, major infrastructure (rail and port), bulk pharmaceutical, water and wastewater, power generation and distribution, pulp and paper and critical data facilities.
He is also an experienced integrator and facilitator of HAZOP, safety in design and other risk management processes during the design and implementation phases of a project.
Vicki Hood
Environmental and Approvals Manager
Ms Hood is the Environmental and Approvals Manager, with responsibility for all the environmental approvals for Renascor’s projects currently under development. Ms Hood has extensive experience in environmental management, community engagement, approvals and sustainability. Prior to joining Renascor, Vicki has had over 25 years’ experience with some of the largest resource companies in Australia and overseas. This includes the site Environmental Manager with Chevron for the Gorgon Project on Barrow Island and the Environmental Manager for the Ahafo expansion project for Newmont in West Africa.
Adam Rusinski
Commercial and Business Development Manager
Adam is a senior commercial professional with over 25 years’ experience in the resources industry. Prior to joining Renascor, Adam served as Head of Analysis at Beach Energy Limited during a period of substantial new investment by the company. Adam’s extensive experience covers a broad range of senior commercial roles at Beach, Woodside Energy Limited and Santos Limited, including senior roles in commercial analysis and decision making, international business development, corporate development & strategy, upstream joint venture management and LNG marketing & shipping. Adam holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Adelaide and a graduate diploma in Applied Finance and Investment, majoring in mining investment analysis.
