Board of Directors
Dr Qingtao Zeng
Non-Executive Chairman
Dr Zeng has been extensively involved in the lithium exploration and development sector and is well connected with potential off-take partners having acted as intermediary for the supply or purchase of spodumene concentrate for a number of producers. He has been engaged as a consulting geologist in a range of geological and commercial environments.
Dr Zeng completed a PhD in geology at the Centre of Exploration Targeting (CET) of University of Western Australia in 2013. Dr Zeng has published several academic papers on structure control orogenic gold system in different geological scales, and is a member of AUSIMM and Society of Economic Geologist (SEG). He is currently Managing Director of Australasian Metals Ltd, and a non-executive Director of Kodal Minerals plc, MetalsTech Ltd and Winsome Resources Ltd.
Mr Caue (Paul) Araujo
Chief Executive Officer
Caue is a qualified Australian-Brazilian geologist and an experienced mining industry professional. Following his early training with Vale in Brazil his subsequent roles have included General Manager of SRK Consulting Brazil, Regional Director of Investment and Business Planning at Hatch for Australia and Asia and more recently Global General Manager – Mine Finance with mining industry advisory group Palaris Australia. He has a strong aptitude for the technical and economic evaluation of mineral resource projects, having been involved in the development of numerous projects during his career working with finance providers and equity investors including emerging lithium miners and mine gate concentrate producers.
Caue is a member of the Australasian Institute of Mining & Metallurgy (AusIMM), the Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD) and has an MBA (Project Management, Business and Finance) from Ibmec University, Brazil. Through his diverse experience, Caue has refined his abilities to lead and manage multi-disciplinary teams. He is well acquainted with the key chemical companies, battery producers and EV manufacturers’ supply chain and their requirements to secure environmentally responsible long-term sources of lithium supply.
Caue is based in Perth and brings the Oceana team both critical minerals industry experience, broader corporate leadership skills and extensive international experience.
Mr Aidan Platel
Non-Executive Director
Mr Platel is an experienced geologist and mining executive with over 25 years’ experience in the minerals industry. He has a broad skill set covering exploration, study execution, project development, mining, mineral processing and corporate financing within the minerals and mining service sectors. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree (Honours in Geology) from UWA and has a Master of Business Administration from the Curtin Graduate School of Business.
Mr Platel has held numerous executive and non-executive director roles in ASX listed exploration companies over his career. He has a proven track-record of exploration success, having helped discover and develop several major deposits including the world-class Santa Rita Nickel deposit (1Mt+ contained Ni metal) in Brazil. Mr Platel is currently Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Charger Metals NL and Non-Executive Director of Olympio Metals Ltd.
Mr Dan Smith
Non-Executive Director & Company Secretary
Mr Smith has 15 years’ experience in financial markets, including 10 years’ experience with listing rules compliance and corporate governance. He is a director and co-founder of Minerva Corporate Pty Ltd, a boutique corporate services and advisory firm.
Mr. Smith is a fellow member of the Governance Institute of Australia and holds a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations from Curtin University. Mr Smith is Chairman of ASX listed rare earths explorer DY6 Limited and acts as company secretary for a number of ASX, AIM and NSX listed companies.
Senior Management
Mr Mike Sousa
Exploration Manager and Competent Person
Mr Sousa is a passionate and results driven geoscientist with over seventeen years exploration and project development experience in his native Brazil and internationally on battery minerals (Cu, Ni and Li), Gold deposits, Alkaline Phosphates, Niobium and Rare Earth Elements. His experience includes planning and execution of exploration programs from early to advanced stage and mine expansion projects and providing technical leadership for project feasibility studies and evaluation.
He has worked in senior roles in various states in Brazil for junior, mid-tier and major national and international partner companies including Equinox Gold, Lithium Ionic, OZ Minerals, Anglo American, Vale and Glencore. He brings to the Company deep local knowledge and established relationships with professional service providers as well as local landowners. Mr Sousa is a Member of the Australian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy – MAusIMM (CP) and is Oceana Lithium´s Competent Person.
Ms Cintia Maia
Company Administrator, Brazil
Ms Cintia Maia is Manager, Corporate and director of the Company’s Brazilian operating subsidiary, Ceará Litio Mineração Ltda. Ms Maia is an experienced corporate manager and administrator and qualified accountant with over 20 years’ experience. She is familiar with reporting requirements for Australian public companies, having previously worked as CFO for GRD Minproc, AMEC Canada and a number of other mining and industrial companies and brings a wealth of practical experience to her role as the Company’s senior corporate officer in Brazil.
Ms Carolina Carvalho
Manager Legal Affairs, Brazil
Ms Carvalho is an experienced corporate lawyer having spent more than 15 years working with medium and large multi-nationals operating in Brazil. She has worked in mergers and acquisitions, tax planning and strategic business development across a number of industries including mining.
