VANCOUVER, British Columbia, June 01, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- SouthGobi Resources Ltd. (TSX:SGQ) (HK:1878) (“SouthGobi” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce the appointment, effective today, of Mr. Shougao Wang as Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Weiguo Zhang as Chief Financial Officer, and Mr. Aiming Guo as Chief Operating Officer.
Mr. Wang, age 51, is a seasoned mining professional, having accumulated over 30 years of project management and operational experience and has worked on a number of mining projects in Mongolia and across the globe. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Wang was Manager of QHSE (Quality, Health, Safety and Environment) at China Nonferrous Metal Industry’s Foreign Engineering and Construction Co., Ltd. (Shenzhen Stock Exchange: 00758) (“NFC”) from March 2017 until May 2018, during which he was responsible for project quality control, health, environmental protection, and workplace health and safety matters. Mr. Wang held various senior project management positions at different international mining projects operated by NFC and its parent company, China Nonferrous Metal Mining (Group) Co. Ltd. (“CNMC”), including Project Manager of the Chambishi copper mine, a large-scale copper mine in Zambia, and Project Manager and Vice President from 2000 to 2006 and Chief Executive Officer from 2011 to 2017 of Tsairt Mineral LLC, the parent company of the Tumurtiin-Ovoo zinc mine in Mongolia. Mr. Wang is a certified engineer and obtained his bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Kunming University of Science and Technology in China in 1989 and a master’s degree in business administration from Renmin University in China in 2013.
Mr. Zhang, age 54, has over 30 years of experience in financial accounting, auditing and corporate finance. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Zhang spent over 30 years working in a number of different senior finance roles in NFC and CNMC’s various subsidiaries and global offices, including as President of NFC’s Kyrgyzstan office (November 2012 to December 2017), Deputy Manager of NFC’s audit department (January 2003 to January 2004) and Chief Financial Officer of Guangdong Zhujiang Rare Metal Co. Ltd (January 2004 to September 2007), during which he was responsible for financial and accounting management. He was the Vice Manager of NFC’s corporate development (investment) department (September 2007 to November 2012). Most recently, Mr. Zhang served as Manager of the cost control department of the first construction division of NFC (December 2017 to May 2018). Mr. Zhang obtained his bachelor’s degree (September 1982 to July 1986) in economics at Dongbei University of Finance and Economics in China.
Mr. Guo, age 49, is a certified engineer with over 20 years of project management experience. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Guo was Deputy Chief Engineer at Shanxi Hongsha First Construction Co., Ltd. (“Shanxi Hongsha”) from January 2014 until May 2018, during which he was responsible for technical management. Mr. Guo spent over 9 years working in various management capacities in Shanxi Hongsha’s Mongolia project department. Mr. Guo holds a bachelor’s degree (September 1991 to June 1995) in survey engineering from the China University of Mining and Technology.
The appointment of Messrs. Wang, Zhang and Guo as executive officers of the Company has been approved by the Board of Directors of the Company (the “Board”) upon the recommendation of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee of the Board, which is comprised of all independent non-executive directors, by reference to each of their respective duties and responsibilities as well as the prevailing market conditions.
Mr. Mao Sun, the interim independent Lead Director of the Board, said, “We are very pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Wang as Chief Executive Officer and Messrs. Zhang and Guo to the Company’s senior management team. The new team has the support of China Investment Corporation and China Cinda Asset Management Co., Ltd., the two largest shareholders of the Company. Each of the new management appointees brings extensive mining industry experience to the Company and we look forward to their leadership in guiding and shaping the future of the Company.”
Mr. Wang Bing, the Company’s former interim Chief Executive Officer, is returning to his prior position as General Manager, Sales and Marketing of the Company. Mr. Yulan Guo, the Company’s former Chief Financial Officer, is leaving the management team to pursue other business endeavors.
About SouthGobi
SouthGobi, listed on the Toronto and Hong Kong stock exchanges, owns and operates its flagship Ovoot Tolgoi coal mine in Mongolia. It also holds the mining licences of its other metallurgical and thermal coal deposits in South Gobi Region of Mongolia. SouthGobi produces and sells coal to customers in China.