Liontown appoints ex-Fortescue CFO Ian Wells to board

The news: Lithium play Liontown Resources has appointed former Fortescue chief financial officer Ian Wells to its board as the miner looks to transition its flagship project into production next year. Wells will replace non-executive director Anthony Cipriano, who is stepping down after 10 years on the board.

The numbers: Wells has 20 years operational experience across financial functions, Liontown said, including 13 years at Fortescue and more than five years as the iron ore giant's CFO.

The context: Over the 10 years of Cipriano's time on the board, Liontown has developed from an explorer to a pre-production miner. With the ink setting on a recent debt and equity package after a failed takeover bid by Albemarle, production at Liontown's flagship Kathleen Valley mine is set to start in mid-2024. Liontown will hold its annual general meeting at 2pm AEDT today.

What they said: "He brings substantial development and operational experience that will be invaluable to the Company as we complete construction of Kathleen Valley and move into commissioning and production," Liontown chair Tim Goyder said in a statement.