American Resources Corp (NASDAQ:AREC)'s ReElement Technologies Corporation has hired seven professionals to strengthen operational leadership at its Marion, Indiana rare earth and critical mineral refining campus.
The additions bring experience from the US Navy, large-scale continuous-process manufacturing, mining and process engineering, chemical engineering research, manufacturing workforce development and international commercial markets, the company said.
"The strength of any commercial operation ultimately comes down to the people behind it, and this group brings an exceptional combination of experience to ReElement," said Kirk Taylor, CFO of ReElement Technologies.
Bill Baken joins as Shift Operations Manager, bringing more than 20 years of experience in continuous-process manufacturing operations exceeding one million tons annually. Dee Cooper joins as Human Resources Manager to lead workforce recruiting at the Marion facility.
Jacob Miller, an Area Lead, brings more than 10 years of US Navy experience with the Nuclear Regional Maintenance Department. Vedat Ozsever joins as Marion Plant Engineering Manager with 20 years of process engineering experience in coal mining, having overseen operations in Kentucky and West Virginia ranging from 500 to 2,000 tons per hour.
Derrick Roper Jr joins as a Business Analyst supporting business development across Africa and Europe, following prior experience at Novare Holdings. Glen Stewart, a Shift Operations Manager, brings more than 22 years of US Navy leadership experience in large-scale operations and maintenance execution.
Eddie Tsao returns to ReElement as Senior Research Scientist and focus on developing processing solutions for new feedstocks.
The hires follow the company's commissioning of its first commercial-scale germanium production column at Marion and its receipt of air permits for all four initial production lines planned for the facility. ReElement said it continues commissioning additional production capacity while preparing for broader commercial production across a range of rare earth and critical mineral products.