The team brings extensive additional expertise in lithium processing and refining, project development, and the delivery of mining operations into production, strengthening CTL’s technical capabilities as the company works towards commercial tin and lithium production.

The team’s initial focus will be supporting the upcoming drilling and test work program at Tregonning South. Their appointment marks an important step in strengthening CTL’s technical and operational capabilities as it accelerates project development and builds a portfolio of producing tin and lithium assets.

CTL is delighted to welcome the following to the team:

  • Hanno Buys, MEng, Pr.Eng, MIMMM, QMR, MSAIMM, a mining engineer with over 20 years of international experience across mine development and operations, including over 70 mining projects globally. He has a strong track record of advancing mining projects through their development stages. Hanno previously served as Head of Mining at Imerys British Lithium in the UK, with responsibilities including Life of Mine Planning, mineral resource development and technical due diligence.

  • Ben Cordier, BSc (Hons), MSc, MCSM, CEng, MIMMM, a Chartered Engineer and technical leader specialising in extractive metallurgy, mineral processing, and process engineering, with 20 years of international experience across process development projects, fixed plant operations, and mine site remediation. He previously served as Head of Process for the Imerys British Lithium project.

  • Caroline Viles, BSc (Hons), CIMA, CGMA, previously served as Financial Controller for Imerys British Lithium, with responsibilities including translating complex technical and economic variables into real-time business models to drive scoping and pre-feasibility study (PFS) deliverables. Caroline’s previous roles include Director of Commercial Finance at Monzo Bank and an early-career position as a Corporate M&A Economist at Royal Dutch Shell.

  • Gavin Palmer, BEng (Hons), CEng, FIChemE, MAPM, previously served as Head of Project Delivery at Imerys British Lithium and has a proven track record of delivering multi-billion-dollar projects across the energy, mining and chemical sectors. He was previously Project Delivery Director at Mitsubishi Chemical Group, with executive accountability for the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) delivery of a US$2.4 billion, world-scale, low-carbon chemical facility in Louisiana, USA.

Phase 3 drilling at Tregonning South, completed in January 2026, demonstrated continuity of lithium mineralisation across 3.27 kilometres, building on the lithium discovery made by CTL at Tregonning North in 2022.

The extent of lithium mineralisation within the G5 Granite highlights the scale and exploration potential of CTL’s Tregonning projects. During 2025 and 2026, CTL also identified a new tin mineralisation system at Tregonning South, comprising more than 10 new tin lodes and a sheeted vein system.

The Vor Project includes a group of 26 historic producing tin mines, where CTL’s exploration drilling in 2022 and 2024 identified 28 high-grade tin targets, with grades peaking at 6.28% tin, including eight new tin lodes.


Sally Norcross-Webb, Founder and CEO of CTL, said: “We are delighted to have appointed Hanno, Ben, Caroline and Gavin. They are a world-class team who bring immense knowledge and experience across mining, lithium processing, and refining, and advancing projects into production. This initial two-year contract will be pivotal in accelerating CTL’s path to production. Our long-term objective is to build a portfolio of producing assets rather than depend on a single standalone mine. In the near term, our immediate priority is Tregonning South, where the continuity of the lithium field, together with extensive tin mineralisation across the area, presents the earlier opportunity to get to production. The immediate next step is a major drilling and test work programme.”