Nemaska Lithium Welcomes New Directors
QUEBEC CITY, June 01, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- 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 |