Brazilian Nickel Limited Management Changes

19 Sep Brazilian Nickel Limited Management Changes

Brazilian Nickel Limited (‘BRN’ or the ‘Company’), the private UK company developing the Piauí Nickel Project (‘Project’) in Brazil, is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Patrick Boitumelo as Chief Operating Officer (‘COO’), Mr. André Simão as Chief Financial Officer (‘CFO’), and Mr. Jorge Tapia as Project Director. These appointments further strengthen the management team, bringing additional and complementary skills, as the Company continues to progress the Project towards construction.

Mr. Boitumelo joins BRN from Lundin Mining Corporation, where he was part of the executive leadership team and held the position of Senior Vice President Technical Services and Growth. In this position, he was responsible for global exploration programs, major projects studies, technical services and information technology. He has previously held various senior positions, including Global Head of Technology & Innovation and Head of Atlantic Operations at Vale Base Metals. Prior to Vale, he held several senior roles with Rio Tinto and DeBeers, including President & COO of Diavik Diamond Mines in Canada and General Manager positions in South Africa and USA.

Mr. Boitumelo has a BA (Hons.) Engineering degree from the University of Leeds and holds a Master’s degree in Business Leadership from the University of South Africa.

Mr. Simão brings over 25 years of experience within the mining, technology and finance sectors, specialising in mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance, venture capital and private equity, and digital transformation.

Mr. Simão was CFO at Brazil-focused Ferrous Resources, which acquired, developed and operated distressed mining assets, and was later sold to Vale. More recently, André structured and negotiated over $100 million in structured finance for developing and acquiring new mining and technology assets at SJK Capital and Genesis Mining, as CEO and CFO. During his career, André has held Partner and CFO roles at HVC Par Investments & Rede Vera Cruz, Fir Capital, and was a Senior Audit Manager at Arthur Andersen (currently Deloitte), all of which were based in Brazil. André has also worked at Flex International in the US.

Mr. Tapia has over 25 years’ experience in managing small and large-scale projects, overseeing engineering, construction, and maintenance programmes. Mr. Tapia was previously Project Manager for Antofagasta Minerals’ MLP INCO and Antucoya projects, in Chile, and for Anglogold Ashanti’s La Colosa project in Colombia. His earlier work also included working as Engineering Manager at BHP’s Spence SX-EW project.

Adrian Harvey has stepped down as the Company’s CFO.  He will remain with BRN in his role as Company Secretary.

Mark Travers, CEO of Brazilian Nickel, commented:

“We are pleased to welcome Patrick, André and Jorge to the Company during this exciting and pivotal period for Brazilian Nickel. Their extensive experience in their respective fields will be invaluable to the Company as we continue to strengthen our Board and Senior Management team, establishing a platform from which we can further deliver value for all stakeholders and shareholders.

“I would like to thank Adrian for his hard work and commitment in his capacity as CFO, which has helped develop Brazilian Nickel to what it is today. We are pleased that his expertise and knowledge is remaining with the Company.”

Patrick Boitumelo, COO of Brazilian Nickel, commented:

“I am thrilled to be joining Brazilian Nickel, a company that shares my ethos and passion for building effective and sustainable teams, as well as creating a lasting legacy for communities and stakeholders.

“I am joining the Company at an exciting time, as we prepare to build the first large scale commercial nickel and cobalt heap leach facility in the world. I am looking forward to working with the team as we prepare to establish a low capital intensity, low operating cost and low carbon footprint operation.”

André Simão, CFO of Brazilian Nickel, commented: 

“I am delighted to be joining Brazilian Nickel on its journey to establish large-scale nickel production in Brazil. Having previously been a critical part in developing a number of mining projects in Brazil, I am confident my experience is aligned with the Company’s strategy, and I look forward to further advancing the work that Adrian and the team have achieved thus far.”

Jorge Tapia, Project Director of Brazilian Nickel, commented:

“My skills and experience, obtained from working across significant mining projects, will augment the existing skills of the Brazilian Nickel team, during a pivotal time in the development of the Project.

“I look forward to working on the Project, which is of great importance for future nickel supply, and ensuring that the Project progress towards production in a timely, low-cost, safe and sustainable manner.”

About Brazilian Nickel Limited

BRN is a privately held UK company established in 2013 to develop nickel laterite heap leach projects worldwide, beginning with its flagship Piauí Nickel Project in Brazil.  The BRN team are all highly experienced mining industry professionals with extensive experience in South America and worldwide. The team has been developing the heap leaching of nickel laterites for over 20 years with a view to building a world class nickel and cobalt producing company.

About the Piauí Nickel Project

The Piauí Nickel Project is an advanced-staged project that will produce a low carbon footprint nickel and cobalt with strong ESG credentials ideal for the developing EV supply chain in the Americas.  As a staged approach to the full-scale project, a small-scale PNP1000 project was commissioned in 2022, which has provided a quick-start to operations and the production of nickel hydroxide intermediate product.

For more information please visit the company website at www.braziliannickel.com, as well as following the company on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.

Contact: [email protected]