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Sirius Resources has recruited three executives from copper miner Sandfire Resources following a spate of positive exploration results and the ramp-up of its drilling program.
The trio's move to Sirius comes after the recent completion of Sandfire’s DeGrussa copper mine development, and indicates Sirius' desire to progress rapidly with its own mining project.
Shares in Sirius have skyrocketed in recent weeks after the company announced promising drill results at its Fraser Range nickel-copper project which included larger than expected mineralisation from its new Bollinger discovery.
The announcement of the new Bollinger discovery at Fraser Range has confirmed that the project will extend beyond the initial Nova nickel-copper find.
Martin Reed has joined Sirius as chief operations officer, having recently served as COO with Sandfire and as project manager of its DeGrussa project.
Mr Reed has previous experience as COO of St Barbara and Windimurra Vanadium as well as construction manager of BHP’s Ravensthorpe nickel project.
He also served as general manager with Paladin, Matrix and Tectonic Resources.
Former Sandfire construction manager at the DeGrussa project, David English has joined Sirius as the company’s project manager for processing and infrastructure.
Bill Cunningham has joined as advisor for marketing and offtake after serving as a consultant on the DeGrussa project.
Sirius’ managing director Mark Bennett said the company was pleased with the three appointments.
“We are delighted to have Martin, David and Bill join our team and we are very fortunate to have the benefit of their combined experience as we move the Nova project forward. Their expertise will greatly complement our existing geological team as they continue to explore within the Eye and throughout the Fraser Range project area.”
“Sirius could not ask for a better credentialed, ready-made team to develop the rapidly evolving Nova-Bollinger project,” he said.
Sandfire said it intends to appoint a new chief operating officer with a strong background and experience in operational management and has commenced an executive search process.
“With the DeGrussa operation completing its ramp-up to full production over the next few months, we see this as an appropriate time in the Company’s evolution to further strengthen our management team with the appointment of a new COO who will work closely with our existing operations and commercial teams as Sandfire moves into its next chapter of growth.” managing director Karl Simich said.