Latrobe Magnesium Ltd. has announced a leadership transition after long-standing CEO and founder David Paterson will retire after two decades at the helm.
Paterson, who guided the company through the development and operationalisation of its patented Hydromet extraction process, will officially step down on September 30. He will remain available to the business in an advisory consulting role.
Former Head of Macquarie Group’s Resources Research franchise, Robert Stein, has been appointed as CEO, effective October.
A qualified chemical engineer holding an MBA from Melbourne Business School, Stein brings over 20 years of technical, financial, and commercial experience across the resources sector.
His career includes nearly a decade at BHP focused on capital allocation strategy, alongside senior executive positions leading group strategy and planning at MMG Limited.
In tandem with the executive leadership transition, Latrobe Magnesium has appointed experienced mining project developer Peter Mizera as independent Chairman of the Board’s Construction and Completions Committee.
Mizera, a mechanical engineer who previously held senior project delivery management roles at Newcrest Mining and MMG, will oversee the completion and delivery of capital works.
The management overhaul comes as Latrobe Magnesium advances its magnesium metal demonstration plant in Victoria’s Latrobe Valley.
The world-first process extracts high-value magnesium metal, cementitious material, and other commercial products from industrial brown coal fly ash tailings.
The company recently achieved initial production of magnesium oxide via its Hydromet technology and is working toward full plant commissioning.
The board expressed deep gratitude to Paterson for his sustained commitment in bringing the proprietary technology to operational reality, noting that commercial production of magnesium oxide would not have been possible without his two decades of dedication.