SYDNEY: Liontown Resources Limited announced the appointment of international mining executive Tony Ottaviano as Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director, effective from on or about 1 May 2021.
Mr Ottaviano will oversee the Company’s next critical growth phase as it embarks on the financing and development of a major new next-generation Australian lithium mine at its Tier-1 Kathleen Valley lithium-tantalum project in Western Australia.
Liontown’s long-serving Managing Director David Richards will transition to the role of Technical Director, with responsibility for driving the Company’s early-stage exploration projects outside of Kathleen Valley, including its exciting Moora gold-PGE-nickel-copper project in WA’s Julimar Region, and identifying new greenfield opportunities.
Mr Ottaviano is a highly-credentialed global mining executive with wide-ranging strategic, operational, commercial and corporate experience. He has held senior executive roles with two of the world’s largest mining companies, BHP and Rio Tinto, as well as the diversified industrial conglomerate Wesfarmers.
Prior to accepting the role of Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director with Liontown, Mr Ottaviano was Program Director Improvement and BHP Operating System (BOS) with BHP Limited – a system that forms the foundation of BHP’s 10-year safety and productivity strategy and is being deployed across all of BHP’s major assets.
Prior to this, he was Vice President Strategy, Development and Planning for BHP Iron Ore, where he led a global 1,000-plus team based in Perth and the Pilbara, including all M&A, exploration, resource planning, supply chain and technology.
Earlier in his career, he was Senior Manager Business Projects at top-10 ASX-listed conglomerate Wesfarmers Limited and Manager Business Development for North Limited / Rio Tinto Limited.
He commenced his career as a Mechanical Engineer working in the Iron Ore Division of BHP Billiton and later as a Senior Mechanical Engineer at Rio Tinto’s Argyle Diamonds Division.
Commenting on his appointment, Mr Ottaviano said: “I was attracted to Liontown because of the exciting opportunity to build a world-class battery metals business that can play a meaningful role in the impending global energy transformation. As a Tier-1 lithium asset with world-class scale and economics, Kathleen Valley is uniquely placed to meet growing demand for battery raw materials, both as a low-cost spodumene producer and as a potential participant in the high-value downstream segment of the lithium raw materials supply chain.”
Liontown’s Chairman, Mr Tim Goyder, said: “With Tony at the helm, I have every confidence that Liontown will be in very safe hands as we make the all-important transition from explorer-developer to mid-tier mining company. We are absolutely delighted that he has agreed to take up this opportunity.”
“Tony’s experience in leading and motivating large teams and delivering exceptional results with some of the world’s leading mining companies will be invaluable as we complete the Definitive Feasibility Study at Kathleen Valley, negotiate off-take agreements and move rapidly towards financing and construction of a state-of-the-art, next-generation Australian lithium project. All of this is set to occur at a time of exciting growth and renewed momentum in the global lithium sector, driven by the burgeoning EV and renewable energy industries.
“We are also pleased to announce that David Richards will transition to the newly-created role of Technical Director with responsibility for driving Liontown’s exciting exploration projects outside of Kathleen Valley, including the Moora project. David has made a huge contribution to Liontown’s growth and success over the past 10 years, and I can think of no one better qualified to advance these projects to the next stage and identify other new growth opportunities.
“As Liontown transitions into a development company, we will give consideration as to the best pathway to maximise the value of these growth assets, including a possible demerger and IPO of our exploration assets outside of Kathleen Valley.”
Liontown Resources (ASX:LTR) is a battery metals exploration and development company with a Tier-1 discovery at its flagship Kathleen Valley Lithium-Tantalum Project in Western Australia.