Wiluna Mining Corporation Ltd (ASX:WMC, OTC:WMXCF) has appointed Rowan Johnston as interim non-executive chairman and Michael Monaghan as acting CEO, following the immediate resignation of executive chairman Milan Jerkovic.
The pair will be supported by acting COO Robert Ryan and a dedicated on-site team led by Jon Pluckhahn.
This new team will be tasked with resetting the mine plan to take advantage of the 5.5 million ounce gold resource reported at the Wiluna operations.
Wiluna controls more than 1,600 square kilometres of the Yilgarn Region in the Northern Goldfields of Western Australia.
Onwards and upwards
This change in management structure comes after a successful and well supported capital raising as the company looks to execute its mine plan.
Interim chairman Rowan Johnston said: “With the new flotation plant producing saleable concentrate and operating at a higher than name-plate capacity and improved specifications, the question of metallurgy has been answered. The gold is there, it can be extracted and recovered.
"With most of the upfront capital expenditure on the WilTails project already spent and its commissioning currently being targeted for October 2022, we will have a further revenue stream coming online.
“Now we will focus on finalising a realistic, executable mine plan over the coming months that will provide a return to our shareholders, whilst also ensuring a focus on cost management.
"This is reflected in the addition of Mike and Robert to the executive management team both well respected and experienced in underground mining engineering. And on behalf of the company and myself, I would like to thank Milan for his tireless efforts, belief and contribution to the company and wish him all the best for the future.”
About Mike Monaghan
Mike Monaghan is a mining engineer with more than 30 years of management experience in underground and open pit operations across a number of commodities as well as commissioning, mine management, turnaround management and environmental and safety compliance in Australia, Africa, Asia and Europe.
He was most recently chief operating officer for Highland Gold and prior to that held chief operating officer and general manager roles for Akara Resources in Thailand, a subsidiary of Kingsgate Consolidated, general manager and mining manager positions at AngloGold Ashanti (ASX:AGG)'s Geita Gold Mine in Tanzania, Etruscan Resources Youga Gold Mine in Burkina Faso and Redback Mining’s Chirano Gold Mine in Ghana.