News Releases
Athabasca Minerals Inc. announces personnel alignment
EDMONTON, Jan. 18 /CNW/ - Athabasca Minerals Inc. ("Athabasca" or the "Company") (TSX Venture: ABM) is pleased to announce the alignment of personnel into two management teams that reflect the two primary areas of Company activities: Aggregate exploration and development, and Minerals exploration.
The Aggregate management team will focus on exploration and development of sand and gravel deposits throughout northern Alberta. The team objective will be to establish Athabasca as a major sand and gravel producer for the region. This team comprises the following personnel: Udomdej (Dom) Kriangkum, Shaun O'Connor-Parsons, and Dale Nolan.
These personnel have been involved in the aggregates industry for many years. They have explored for, proven and brought into production tens of millions of tonnes of sand and gravel throughout Alberta. Together, they have been actively involved in the aggregates industry in the Fort McMurray region for the past nine years through the management of two public pits for the Alberta Government, namely the Susan Lake Gravel Pit and the Poplar Creek South Gravel Pit. The Poplar Creek Gravel Pit is located approximately 30 kilometres north of Fort McMurray. The Susan Lake Gravel Pit lies approximately 80 kilometres north of Forth McMurray, in the heart of the current oil sands activities. Currently, it is the largest supplier of aggregates for the development of the Oil Sands Industry and one of the biggest gravel operations in Canada.
Dom Kriangkum, P.Eng - President, Chief Executive Officer, Director Mr. Kriangkum has over 25 years experience in the construction industry in Alberta. He has a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of Alberta. Mr. Kriangkum is a professional engineer registered with APEGGA and APEGBC. He is the President of two independent engineering companies, DK Engineering Services Ltd. and DK Consulting Services Ltd., both based in Edmonton, Alberta. He is also the President of a major sand and gravel company, Aggregates Management Inc., in Fort McMurray since 1998.
Shaun O'Connor-Parsons - Vice President, Aggregate Exploration and Development, Director
For the past nine years, Mr. Parsons has been a Managing Director of Aggregates Management Inc. He has been active in the Aggregates Industry in Alberta and Western Canada for over forty years with a special emphasis on searching for, acquiring and developing major sand and gravel resources. Mr. Parsons has been the President of General Gravel Sales Ltd., an Edmonton based Gravel Company, for over twenty five years. Prior to this, he was involved in diverse commercial enterprises in East Africa, India and the Middle East including hardwood, tea, rice and oil.
Dale Nolan - Vice President, Aggregate Operations and Strategic Planning, Director
Mr. Nolan has been a Managing Director of Aggregates Management Inc. since 1998. He is also the President of Hopkins Construction (Lacombe) Ltd., a major gravel crushing company based in Lacombe, Alberta, since 1997. He has been involved in the gravel crushing business for over 30 years, focusing on gravel crushing operations, development of pits, reclamation of pits and corporate administration and strategic planning. Mr. Nolan has served as director for the Alberta Roadbuilders and Heavy Construction Association, sitting as Chair of the Aggregates Committee as well as Chair of the Environment Committee. He has been a director and is a past President of the Alberta Sand and Gravel Association.
The Minerals management team will focus on exploration of mineral resource prospects in northeastern Alberta, including such minerals as silica sand, salt, gypsum, limestone, and diamonds. Here the team objective is to identify mineral opportunities and evaluate the resource potential of indigenous minerals primarily for use in support of Oil Sands development. In this connection, Athabasca will seek to become a major supplier of the mineral - chemical requirements for Oil Sands processing in the future.
The Minerals team comprises the following personnel: Dom Kriangkum, Wylie Hamilton, and Darrell Cotterill.
Wylie Hamilton, P.Eng. - Vice President, Chief Geologist, Director
Mr. Hamilton is a practicing economic minerals geologist. Educated at the University of Saskatchewan with degrees in Geological Engineering (B.E.) and Geology (MSc), he has more than forty years of working experience, the greater part as an industrial minerals specialist with the Alberta Geological Survey ("AGS"). Mr. Hamilton's work has focused primarily on resource mapping and evaluation of Alberta minerals, on which he has more than 70 publications including major works on salt, limestone, gypsum, ironstone and silica. Mr. Hamilton retired in 1995, but holds an Emeritus Scientist position at AGS and continues to pursue interests in his field.
Darrell Cotterill, B.Sc., P. Geol. - Consultant
Mr. Cotterill is a geological consultant with over eighteen years experience in northeast Alberta studying the entire sedimentary succession. A graduate of the University of Alberta (B.Sc. Geology 1989), Mr. Cotterill was employed by the Alberta Geological Survey for 11 years. He is currently President of Parallax Resources Ltd. and Tri-Core Exploration Ltd. His primary focus has been the bitumen-rich beds within the Lower Cretaceous Mannville Group of sedimentary rocks. His regional stratigraphic studies in northeast Alberta include detailed core and outcrop description of the rock units and extensive sub-surface correlation. He is a co-author of numerous regional reports characterizing the bitumen-rich Wabiskaw and McMurray formations. Other publications include regional stratigraphic studies within the Devonian succession and the Upper Cretaceous Pelican Formation.
About Athabasca
Athabasca is a junior mineral exploration company that has a vision to become one of the major suppliers of chemicals and construction materials to the oil sands industry. The Company holds Alberta Metallic and Industrial Minerals Permits on approximately 581,000 hectares to the south, west and east of the city of Fort McMurray. The Company is currently focused on exploring and developing industrial minerals such as silica sand, salt, gypsum, and limestone that can be used as raw materials for the chemicals and construction materials used in oil sands operations. This new development will be a major locally based secondary industry in the Fort McMurray region. It will boost the already exploding local economy with lower cost products that will enhance the development and bitumen recovery of the oil sands.
In addition to developing minerals resources, Athabasca will explore and develop sand and gravel deposits in the Fort McMurray area. These are vital resources to the construction industry, especially in the oil sands industry where substantial amounts of sand and gravel are used for plant sites construction and mine roads.
Except for historical information contained herein, this news release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Such forward-looking statements or information are based on a number of assumptions, which may prove to be incorrect. Such assumptions include, among other things, statements regarding potential mineralization, sand and gravel deposits, resources and reserves, exploration results, research and development results, and future plans and objectives of Athabasca. Although Athabasca believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements or information are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on such forward looking statements because Athabasca cannot give assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Forward-looking statements or information are based on current expectations, estimates and projections that involve a number of risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated by Athabasca and described in the forward-looking statements or information. The forward-looking statements or information contained in this news release are made as of the date hereof and Athabasca does not undertake any obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking statements or information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless so required by applicable securities laws.
This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any of the securities in the United States. The securities have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the U.S. Securities Act") or any state securities laws and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to any U.S. Person unless registered under the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws or an exemption from such registration is available
The TSX Venture Exchange has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this press release.
For further information: Dom Kriangkum, President and CEO of Athabasca Minerals Inc., at (780) 465-5696
