Nemaska Lithium Inc. (“
Nemaska
Lithium” or
the “
Corporation”) (TSX:NMX) (OTCQX:NMKEF)
(FRANKFURT:N0T) is pleased to announce that, in connection with the
completion of its project financing structure announced on May 30,
2018 and in accordance with terms of investment agreements with
Ressources Québec (“
RQ”) and SoftBank Group Corp.
(“
SoftBank”), its Board of Directors welcomes two
new directors:
• Patrick Godin, Chief Operating Officer and director of
Stornoway Diamond Corporation (“Stornoway”) as RQ
representative; and• Shigeki (Sean) Miwa, General Manager, CEO
Project Office, of SoftBank, as representative of that
organisation.
RQ Representative
As part of the private placement entered into
with RQ, for as long as RQ holds at least 10% of the issued and
outstanding common shares of the Corporation, the Corporation
undertook to ensure: a) that one nominee for election to the board
of directors of the Corporation shall be designated by RQ and to
solicit proxies in order that all nominees proposed by management,
including the RQ representative, be elected as directors of the
Corporation; and b) at any other time when the RQ representative
does not serve on the Corporation’s board of directors (for
example, because of resignation, dismissal or non-election), to
appoint another person designated by RQ as RQ representative on the
board of directors.
Mr. Godin joined Stornoway as Chief Operating
Officer in May 2010 and was appointed director in October 2011. He
has had overall responsibility for the development of the Renard
Project up to commercial production and now oversees operations.
Prior to joining Stornoway, he was Vice President, Project
Development for G Mining Services Inc. and was responsible, in such
capacity, for the development of the Essakane Mine in Burkina Faso,
as contractor for Iamgold Corp. Prior to that, he was Vice
President of Operations for Canadian Royalties, heading the
development of its nickel project in Northern Québec. Prior to
that, he was President and General Manager of the French subsidiary
of Iamgold (originally Cambior Inc.) that was developing the Camp
Caïman gold project in French Guiana, after having held positions
of increasing management responsibility within Cambior. Mr. Godin
holds a bachelor degree in Mining Engineering from Université Laval
(Québec) and is a member of the Ordre des Ingénieurs du Québec and
of the Collège des administrateurs de sociétés. He is a director of
Mason Graphite Inc.
SoftBank Representative
Mr. Miwa holds several positions concurrently
within SoftBank, including Representative Director & CEO of SB
Energy Corp. (from 2017) and General Manager – CEO Project Office
(from 2016), in addition to being a Board Member of the Renewable
Energy Institute (from 2014), Representative Director & CEO of
Bloom Energy Japan Ltd. (from 2013) and director of Clean Energy
Asia LLC (from 2012). Prior to joining SoftBank in 2011, he worked
for Mitsui & Co. Ltd. From 1991, mainly in the natural
resources and energy sector, and was based in Tokyo, Sydney and
Brisbane, Australia. Mr. Miwa graduated from Waseda University in
Tokyo with a B.A. in History, received a Master of Financial
Management from Macquarie University in Sydney, and completed the
General Management Program at Harvard Business School in Boston,
USA.
Michel Baril, Chairman of the Board of Nemaska
Lithium, commented: “We are very happy to have Patrick and Sean
joining us as directors. Patrick’s significant experience as
seasoned executive in project development, operations management
and also as a director of publicly-held companies will prove a
great addition to the Corporation, especially at this juncture of
its development. We are equally looking forward to benefitting from
Sean’s remarkable and vast experience, on a global basis, in the
energy and natural resources sector, which should prove an
excellent fit with our organization.”
The Corporation also reports on the following
grant of stock options as follows:
• 6M options to 6 independent directors;• 9,5M options
to the CEO and 3 officers; and• 3,85M options to 9
managers.
All above-listed options were granted under the
following terms:
• Each stock option confers the right to its holder to
purchase one (1) common share of the Corporation at a price of CAD
$1.04, being the higher of:
- The closing price of one common share of the Corporation on the
TSX as of May 29, May 30 and May 31, 2018; and
- CAD $1.00 (being the offering price of the last public
offering, as announced on May 22, 2018);
• Each stock option expires as at May 29, 2023;• Stock
options granted to each independent director are vesting
immediately; and• Stock options granted to officers and
managers vest in ten (10) equal tranches every three (3) months,
starting as of today.
About Nemaska Lithium
Nemaska Lithium is a developing chemical company
whose activities will be vertically integrated, from spodumene
mining to the commercialization of high-purity lithium hydroxide
and lithium carbonate. These lithium salts are mainly destined for
the fast-growing lithium-ion battery market, which is driven by the
increasing demand for electric vehicles and energy storage
worldwide. With its products and processes, Nemaska Lithium intends
to facilitate access to green energy.
The Corporation will be operating the Whabouchi
mine in Québec, Canada, one of the richest lithium spodumene
deposits in the world, both in volume and grade. The spodumene
concentrate produced at the Whabouchi mine will be processed at the
Shawinigan plant using a unique membrane electrolysis process for
which the Corporation holds several patents.
Nemaska Lithium is a member of the S&P/TSX
SmallCap Index, S&P/TSX Global Mining Index, S&P/TSX Global
Base Metals Index, S&P/TSX Equal Weight Global Base Metals
Index, and the MSCI Canada Small Cap Index. For more information,
visit nemaskalithium.com or twitter.com/Nemaska_Lithium.
Cautionary Statement on Forward-Looking
Information
All statements, other than statements of
historical fact, contained in this press release including, but not
limited to, those relating to the Corporations’ long-term
potential, constitute “forward-looking information” and
“forward-looking statements” within the meaning of certain
securities laws and are based on expectations and projections as of
the date of this press release. Certain important assumptions by
the Corporation in making forward-looking statements include, but
are not limited to, the Corporation being able to bring the
Whabouchi mine and the Shawinigan plant to commercial
production.
Forward-looking statements contained in this
press release including, without limitation, those related to the
above “About Nemaska Lithium” paragraph which essentially describes
the Corporation’s outlook, constitute ''forward-looking
information'' or ''forward-looking statements'' within the meaning
of certain securities laws, and are based on expectations,
estimates and projections as of the time of this press release.
Forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon a number of
estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by the
Corporation as of the time of such statements, are inherently
subject to significant business, economic and competitive
uncertainties and contingencies. These estimates and assumptions
may prove to be incorrect.
Many of these uncertainties and contingencies
can directly or indirectly affect, and could cause, actual results
to differ materially from those expressed or implied in any
forward-looking statements and future events, could differ
materially from those anticipated in such statements.
By their very nature, forward-looking statements
involve inherent risks and uncertainties, both general and
specific, and risks exist that estimates, forecasts, projections
and other forward-looking statements will not be achieved or that
assumptions do not reflect future experience. Forward-looking
statements are provided for the purpose of providing information
about management's expectations and plans relating to the future.
Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these
forward-looking statements as a number of important risk factors
and future events could cause the actual outcomes to differ
materially from the beliefs, plans, objectives, expectations,
anticipations, estimates, assumptions and intentions expressed in
such forward-looking statements. All of the forward-looking
statements made in this press release are qualified by these
cautionary statements and those made in our other filings with the
securities regulators of Canada including, but not limited to, the
cautionary statements made in the “Risk Factors” section of the
Corporation’s Annual Information Form dated October 5, 2017 and the
“Risk Exposure and Management” section of the Corporation’s
quarterly Management Discussion & Analysis. The Corporation
disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any
forward-looking statements or to explain any material difference
between subsequent actual events and such forward-looking
statements, except to the extent required by applicable law.
Further information regarding Nemaska Lithium is
available in the SEDAR database (www.sedar.com) and on the
Corporation's website at: www.nemaskalithium.com.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE
CONTACT:
Victor
Cantore |
Wanda
Cutler |
Investor
Relations |
Investor
Relations |
514 831-3809 |
416 303-6460 |
victor.cantore@nemaskalithium.com |
wanda.cutler@nemaskalithium.com |
|
|
Fanny-Ève Tapp |
|
Media
Relations |
|
514 442-0445 |
|
fanny-eve.tapp@nemaskalithium.com |
|
www.nemaskalithium.com