https://thewest.com.au/business/mining/showdown-averted-as-guard-...

https://thewest.com.au/business/mining/showdown-averted-as-guard-changes-at-birimian-ng-b88423405z

Birimian chairman Winton Willessee and non-executive director Hugh Bresser have resigned from the lithium and gold explorer’s board averting a potentially bruising shareholder meeting, which was scheduled for today.

They will be replaced by Queensland investor Michael Langford and Sunshine Gas founder James McKay, after an alliance of 10 shareholders put together a 6.6 per cent shareholding in the company and lodged a requisition for a shareholder meeting to remove the pair.

Birimian managing director Kevin Joyce, who will remain with the company, thanked Mr Willessee and Mr Bresser for their “outstanding contributions” and wished them well in their future endeavours.

“During the retiring directors’ tenure, the Company has transformed its gold assets to near term potential cash flow and seen the acquisition and rapid development of its world class lithium assets,” the company said in a statement today.

The shake-up follows Birimian terminating discussions over a $107.5 million offer for its Bougouni project from Shandong Mingrui Group, after the Chinese lithium company failed to meet a deadline to hand over a $10.7 million deposit on the transaction.

It is Mr Langford’s second tilt at winning influence on a lithium developer in seven months.
In June he was one of the ringleaders of an attempt to build a voting bloc of Pilbara Minerals’ stock through retail shareholders active on stock chat forum HotCopper and social media.

The group signed on more than 40 holders and filed a substantial shareholding notice before descending into acrimony and folding within a week.

The tilt at Birimian is also believed to have been organised by retail holders through stock chat forums.

In a public post aimed at shareholders yesterday, Mr Langford — who goes by the handle “Super Ninja” on social media — said he believed Birimian had “massive” potential, but needed a “clear and well-articulated strategy that addresses key project risks and provides the market with confidence that BGS will achieve production”.

He said his strategy as a director would be to find a partner for Bougouni with a “group that has proven successful operations and experience in Africa and direct lithium mining and processing experience”, then partner with a world class logistics provider for infrastructure.

The third pillar of the new board’s strategy would be to find “large internationally known battery and electric vehicle companies” to provide underlying long-term off-take contracts, he said.