Management & Directors

  • Judson Culter, CPA, CA

    CEO, PRESIDENT, & DIRECTOR

    Mr. Culter is an experienced start-up entrepreneur and co-founded Rover Critical Minerals in 2016. Mr. Culter has over ten years of international finance, capital markets, and accounting experience. He has helped to raise over $25MM in private and public financings for start-ups and growth orientated companies in the Pacific Northwest, Asia Pacific, and South America. He has taken several mineral resource companies public, most recently Rover Critical Minerals, and prior to that the Dolly Varden Silver project (TSXV: DV), whereby he was a co-founder and also managed the exploration drill program (pre-Hecla Mining investment). Mr. Culter is a former U.S. licensed CPA, and has over 6 years of experience working in the U.S. at the executive level. He currently resides in Kelowna, BC, and holds an active Canadian CPA license (non-practicing).

  • MICHAEL KELLY

    PROJECT GEOLOGIST

    Mr. Kelly spent 35 years in the electronics chip conductor industry in simulator maintenance, high-speed electronic testing, and IT. In mid-2010, Mike returned to university and graduated from California State University Sacramento with a Bachelor of Science degree in Geology in 2020. Bringing this tool-kit to geology, Mike has drilled on both gold and battery minerals projects, including Ioneer’s lithium clay Rhyolite Ridge project, Freegold Venture’s Shorty Creek gold porphyry project, and Graphite One’s graphite project. He brings extensive experience in data collection, analysis, and reporting in various environments. He currently resides in Placerville, California.

  • OLIVER FOESTE, CPA, CA

    CFO

    Oliver Foeste is currently the Managing Partner of Invictus Accounting Group (based in Vancouver, BC), and brings over a decade of financial and business advisory as well as executive and directorship experience across a number of sectors including mining, natural resources, technology, real estate, cannabis, and more. Oliver currently holds strategic CFO roles for a select number of private and public companies, and previously held senior management and executive positions in multinational and small capitalization companies listed in both Canada and the United States. During the earlier years of Oliver’s career he was at Deloitte where he led audit and assurance engagements for both private and public companies, and at Walsh King Chartered Accountants where he prepared tax returns and financial statements for private clients.

  • Keith Inman, LLB

    CORPORATE COUNCIL, CANADA

    Keith is a Canadian lawyer with a broad securities and corporate & commercial law practice that includes advising businesses with respect to initial public offerings (IPOs), reverse takeovers (RTOs), public and private financings, mergers & acquisitions, plans of arrangement, corporate restructurings and reorganizations. Mr. Inman has advised on many corporate financing matters for private and public corporations, both domestic and international. He also assists companies with their securities reporting and compliance obligations, corporate governance and general commercial drafting requirements. Mr. Inman has been a partner with Pushor Mitchell LLP, based in Kelowna, British Columbia, since July 2016. Prior to that, Mr. Inman was a partner with international law firm Dentons Canada LLP, based out of their Calgary office. Mr. Inman has been the founder and a director or officer of multiple public companies and currently sits on the TSX Venture Exchange’s Local Advisory Committee. Mr. Inman received an LLB from the University of Alberta in 2005 and is qualified to practice law in Alberta and British Columbia.

  • Keith Minty, P.Eng, MBA

    DIRECTOR

    Mr. Minty obtained a B.Sc. in Mining Engineering from Queen’s University, Kingston Ontario, Canada in 1978. He has over 26 years of open pit and underground mine operational and project development experience in North America, Central America and in Africa. From 2008 to 2013, Mr. Minty was the Chief Operating Officer at Thani Dubai Mining (“Thani”) where he was responsible for all project exploration and operation activities in Yemen and Egypt as well as new business development activities. Prior to joining Thani, he was the South African country manager for Hunter Dickinson. Mr. Minty has also served on the board of directors of Asanko Gold and Oremex Silver and served as COO at Aurvista Gold. He currently serves on the boards of Auryn Resources, and Callinex Mines.

  • Gary MacDonald, BCOMM, MBA

    DIRECTOR, CORPORATE DEVELOPMENT

    Mr. MacDonald has over 25 years of natural resource experience, specializing in mining operations on a global basis. Mr. MacDonald holds a bachelor of commerce from UBC and a master of business administration from Erasmus University in Rotterdam. Mr. MacDonald’s roles have been all-encompassing from field to boardroom. Mr. MacDonald has been the president and chief executive officer of American Mining Corp. since 2006 and currently holds numerous board positions in the resource sector.

  • Gunnar Pedersen, CFA

    DIRECTOR

    Mr. Pedersen holds a Graduate degree in Financial Economics from the Norwegian School of Economics and is a CFA charter holder. He has absolute return investing and portfolio management experience since 1996, specializing in thematic global macro investing, fixed income and FX. His more recent research interests include socially responsible investments, the battery materials value chain, and renewable/traditional energy. During his career, Mr. Pedersen has co-founded and founded two absolute return focused investment funds. Currently, he is self-employed at his firm, Asymmetric Asset Management, where he focuses on portfolio management and thematic investing, consultancy engagements and directorships.

ADVISORS

  • THOMAS POWELL

    COMMUNITY RELATIONS MANAGER AND TECHNICAL ADVISOR

    Mr. Powell is a graduate of the University of Louisville graduate with BA in Mathematics and Chemistry. 40 years specialty minerals experience focusing on specialty clays. He holds two patents: (1) IVY BLOCK clay-based poison ivy preventative; and, (2) RHEOPOUR oxidized polyethylene rheological additive for high temperature drilling fluids. From 1987 - 1990 he developed water washed HECTORITE organoclay additive based upon Franklin Wells Hectorite (IMVITONE 38H), including the marketing of truckload quantities to paint & coatings industry and drilling industry. Mr. Powell managed the IMV Nevada specialty clay mining operation in Amargosa Valley from 2006 to 2011 (now owned and operated by Lhoist North America). Mr. Powell was also the Manager of Clay Operations for Western Lithium/Lithium Americas from 2011 to 2019. He is familiar with potential markets for by-products of LITHIUM extraction from clay process. He has been an Amargosa Valley resident since 2006.

  • Robert Schafer

    BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT & TECHNICAL ADVISOR

    Mr. Schafer has nearly 40 years of experience in the mineral industry, working in the international sector with both major and junior mining companies. He is founder and Managing Director of Eagle Mines Management, a globally active private natural resources corporation. He has held executive and senior management positions with Hunter Dickinson Inc., Kinross Gold Corp., and BHP Minerals over the past 20 years. Throughout his career Mr Schafer has worked internationally, with notable experience in the far east of Russia, Southern Africa, South America and Australia. His work has included the structuring and implementation of successful exploration strategies, project reviews and valuations leading to acquisitions, and the management of local and expatriate exploration teams operating in a wide variety of geologic environments. In addition, he is the Past-President of the PDAC and Past-President of the Canadian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (CIM) in Canada, and a Past President of the Mining and Metallurgical Society of America and the Geological Society of Nevada in the USA. Mr. Schafer was SME President in 2020-21. Mr. Schafer was the recipient of the Dreyer Exploration Award in 2018 and the William Lawrence Saunders Gold Medal from AIME (2002) and the Daniel C. Jackling Award from SME (2017) for career achievements.

  • John Zimmerman

    EXPLORATION TECHNICAL ADVISOR

    John Zimmerman has an BS in Geology from the University of California at Davis and an MS in Geology from the University of Arizona, and has been active in western US mineral exploration for over 40 years. He was the co-discoverer of the Chimney Creek (Twin Creeks) Mine, a 20 million oz. gold deposit, and as a result has an enviable reputation in the Industry. He is an expert in western US gold and lithium exploration and has been a consistent generator of quality exploration opportunities in in the US exploration and elsewhere. Mr. Zimmerman has been active in all phases of mineral exploration including strategy, planning, budgeting, property evaluation, and project generation. He has contributed to the success of several prosperous explorers including Newmont, Goldfields Mining, and Meridian Gold. Most recently, he directed all Great Basin gold exploration of BHP Minerals International. In addition to Nevada, he has worked in China and South America. Merrick and Zimmerman were the co-owners of Genesis Gold Corporation and built it into a success which they sold for several million dollars in 2020.

  • Mike Power, P.Geo, M.Sc.

    TECHNICAL ADVISOR

    Mike Power has over 30 years’ experience in the mineral exploration industry. He holds a Bachelors’ of Science in Geology and Masters’ of Science in Geophysics from the University of Alberta. In 1988 Mr. Power founded Amerok Geosciences Ltd. and served as President until merging to form Aurora Geosciences Ltd. in 2000 where he held the title of Vice-President until 2010. Since 2010 he has been President of Panarc Resource Ltd., a private mineral exploration company operating in Alaska, Yukon, NWT, Nunavut and Nevada. Mr. Power also serves as CEO and Director at Silver Range Resources.

  • Gary Vivian, P.Geo, M.Sc.

    TECHNICAL ADVISOR

    Gary Vivian is Chairman at Aurora Geosciences. Gary is a geologist with over 35 years experience in mineral exploration. Gary was provided with the Award of Merit from Geoscientists Canada (2014) for his long term commitment to the mineral exploration industry in northern Canada as well as his active role in the professional geoscience associations at both the Territorial and National level. Gary also received the Geoscience Award of Merit (2013) from NAPEG, the professional geoscience regulatory body in the NWT and Nunavut, awarded for his significant contributions to the mineral industry in the NWT and Nunavut. Gary currently sits as the President of the NWT and Nunavut Chamber of Mines. Gary has worked across Canada, in QU, BC, SK, NB, ON, NT and NU. His management skills have been applied to large drill programs throughout the North including projects at Sunrise, Nicholas, Fishhook and Run Lakes in Northwest Territories.

  • Raul Sanabria, P.Geo, EuroGeol., M.Sc.

    TECHNICAL ADVISOR

    Raul has over 20 years of progressive experience mainly in precious metals in the mining and exploration industry worldwide, having worked in Europe, West Africa, all over Canada and in several countries of Central and South America. Currently he serves as VP Exploration of Ares Strategic Mining and most recently the positions of Exploration Manager for Tudor Gold Corp., Chief Geologist for Red Eagle Exploration, VP Exploration of American Creek Resources, G4G Resources, Northern Iron Corp, and Principal Geologist and CEO for Condor Precious Metals Inc. Raul is also an early mover in private mining projects such as Malabar Gold Corp focused in Colombian assets, where he is mining high grade gold at small scale generating cash flow for funding larger exploration plays in the country.