Roger Payne, a former general manager for Rio Algom in Elliot Lake, has been appointed as executive vice-president for Pele Mountain Resources Inc.
Payne spent nearly 20 years in the Elliot Lake mining Camp with Rio Algom Ltd., overseeing the mine closure process in the 1990s while serving first as manager of environment and decommissioning and then as general manager. He has been a consultant at Pele Mountain's Eco Ridge Mine Rare Earths and Uranium Project in Elliot Lake since 2008.
Calling his expertise “unparalleled,” Pele president and CEO Al Shefsky said Payne's knowledge and proficiency of mining in Elliot Lake would add “great depth” to the management team.
“His project management expertise and professional relationships with local communities, regulatory agencies, and technical consultants are invaluable as we prepare for sustainable development at Eco Ridge,” Shefsky said in a news release.
Payne's appointment takes effect immediately.
Pele launched a 7,000-metre drill program at Eco Ridge in May, after conducting an NI 43-101 resource estimate, which included rare earth oxides and uranium oxide.
A preliminary economic assessment released in June estimated an operation of 9,400 tonnes per day with 10.7 million pound of total rare earth oxides and 24.9 million pounds of uranium over a 14-year mine life.
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