Western Potash Corp., Vancouver, reorganized its management and board of directors, effective Sept. 29. Geoffrey Chang, chairman of the board, will assume the position of CEO from Patricio Varas. George Gao will assume the role of chief administrative officer, and Jerry Zhang will take on the position of corporate secretary.
The board will now consist of seven members, with Chang and Bill Xue as executive directors, Xia Qinglong as an independent member of the audit committee, Zheng Mianping as an independent member, Buddy Doyle remaining as an independent member, and Patricio Varas and Patrick Power, founders of the company, as non-executive members, both having resigned from their management positions. Power had been senior vice president, development.
New to the board is Xia Qinglong, CEO of ChinaBlue Chemical Ltd., who the company said brings over 30 years of experience in the resource extraction industry after training as a geologist, earning a Ph.D. in geophysics and subsequently training as a professor grade senior engineer at the Chinese University of Sciences Academy.
The company also adds Zheng Mianping, a member of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and the president of the International Society for Salt Lake Research. The company said he is a foremost expert in salt deposits geology and a pioneer in the salt lake mineral extraction industry in China.
Wang Hui and Wang Yinping are leaving the board.
Western Potash is seeking to develop the Milestone Pilot Plant Project in Saskatchewan.