An experienced team
Our team
Yves Leduc
Chief Executive Officer
Yves Leduc is a transformative leader with over 25 years of experience in strategic, manufacturing, product development, and operational roles. He has successfully led global businesses through various stages of growth, bringing industrial technologies to market, developing robust supply chains, scaling production capacity, and ensuring efficient capital use.
Before joining Torngat Metals in March 2025, Yves was a partner at Idealist Capital, a $375 million investment management firm focused on providing growth capital to climate technology companies. He previously served as president and COO of XNRGY, an HVAC manufacturer and one of Idealist Capital’s portfolio companies. From 2015 to 2022, Yves was CEO of Velan, a world-leading industrial valve designer and manufacturer. Before that, he held senior executive roles at BRP, where he successively led its Austrian and North American divisions from 2000 to 2014, worked at McKinsey & Company, and began his career as a litigating attorney at Stikeman Elliott.
Yves has served on several boards, including as Chairman of the not-for-profit Orford Musique, a world-renowned music academy. In 2024, he became an Associate Professor at HEC Montreal, overseeing a $5M+ post-start-up accelerator program. He also advises DNA—Fond de Continuité, a $150M fund supporting Quebec businesses needing urgent financing.
Christine Burow
Chief Marketing Officer
Christine heads Torngat Metals’ marketing and business development initiatives.
With nearly 30 years of senior experience, she has worked in the rare earths sector since 2013. As president of her own consulting firm, she supported global mining, technology, environmental and manufacturing clients. She formerly worked for Resolute Forest Products, Trojan Technologies, Rayonier and Vale’s nickel division.
Christine holds a BSc degree from the University of Waterloo and an executive MBA from Western University.
Mélanie Daunais
Chief Human Resources Officer
With over 25 years of experience across various industries, Mélanie Daunais brings a seasoned blend of human resources expertise and sales acumen to her new role.
Mélanie’s career began in sales, where she forged a strong track record leading various regional and national initiatives. Inspired by the impact of people and culture on business performance, she transitioned into HR, where she has become a trusted leader dedicated to driving organizational change and cultivating world-class teams.
Before joining Torngat Metals, Mélanie served as Chief HR Officer at XNRGY. Her international career includes leadership roles at respected organizations such as Protectron/TELUS, Nestlé Nespresso and Moose Knuckles.
Mélanie holds a certification in Strategy and Innovation from IMD Business School and is a certified Nova Global facilitator – supporting team dynamics and workforce development through powerful psychometric insights helping organizations build stronger collaboration, self-awareness, and leadership capacity.
Olga Kovalik
Chief Operating Officer
Olga Kovalik has over 25 years of international experience in the metals and mining industry, including leadership roles in operations, finance and megaproject construction.
Prior to joining Torngat Metals in April 2025, Olga served as Chief Project Officer for Vale Base Metals. Other positions held include Project Director, Simandou (Rio Tinto), Vice-President of Projects at Itafos and various leadership roles at Alcoa.
Over the course of her career, she has demonstrated her ability to manage large operations, drawing on her in-depth understanding of engineering, construction, maintenance, environment, health and safety and lean manufacturing.
Olga holds a bachelor’s degree in engineering from McGill University (Montreal) and an MBA from Columbia University (New York).
Alain Wilson
Chief Financial Officer
Alain oversees Torngat Metals’ finances. He has over 30 years of experience as a CFO and consultant, focusing on strategy and financial management in the mining, metal and chemical industries.
He previously served as consulting VP and Toronto office head at Mercer Management and was a founding member of Revelstoke Partners.
Alain holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree (honours) from Queen’s University and an MBA from IMD Business School.
Dr. Dirk Naumann
Strategic Advisor
Dirk served as the President and CEO of Torngat Metals from 2018 to 2025. During his tenure, the Strange Lake rare earth project achieved several significant milestones in its development. Although he has chosen to step down from his position as President and CEO, Dirk remains actively involved with Torngat Metals as a strategic and technical advisor.
He has extensive experience in the chemical and mining industries, including previous positions with TH Goldschmidt, Bayer, Vale’s nickel division and Juniper Associates, an international consulting firm.
Dirk holds a master’s degree in chemistry and a doctorate in physical chemistry from the University of Göttingen, Germany.
Mauro Ferrara
Vice President, Finance
Mauro has over 30 years of financial management and reporting experience. Previous public-company roles include CFO of Adacel Technologies, CFO of Bitfarms, CFO of Savaria and Senior Director, Financial Reporting at WSP Global.
He specializes in financial reporting and change management, including the development and implementation of financial controls/processes and productivity improvements.
Mauro is a CPA-CA and holds bachelor’s and graduate degrees in public accounting from McGill University.
Laura Mottola
Vice President, Business Excellence
Laura Mottola has over 30 years of international experience across the mining, metals, automotive, and aerospace sectors, with a focus on operational excellence, innovation, technology, and business transformation.
Prior to joining Torngat Metals in July 2025, Laura was Vice President Supply Chain for Northvolt North America. Other positions held include Vice President Advisory Services for BBA Group, President and CEO of Flow Partners, and Strategic Advisor to the CEO of Molymet.
Laura led operational readiness at a major greenfield copper operation in Chile and has directed Lean transformation and technology programs at major companies in the resource sector. Her experience also includes work in autonomous mining, decarbonization, electrification, and digital transformation, as well as the successful deployment of site-wide processes and systems to improve performance and sustainability.
In addition to her executive leadership roles, Laura has served as a Director, Chair, Council Member, and Board Member of several for-profit and not-for-profit organizations. She is known for ability to foster alignment through collaborative problem-solving in multi-stakeholder environments.
Over the course of her career, she has worked with global organizations in operations and capital projects in the Americas and Australia including Freeport, Codelco, Rio Tinto, Antofagasta Minerals, Sherritt International, and South32.
Laura holds a bachelor’s degree in mining engineering and a master’s degree in mining automation, both from McGill University (Montreal). She is a certified member of the Institute of Corporate Directors (ICD.D).
Dr. Sylvie St-Jean
Vice President, Environment
Sylvie has over 25 years of mining experience, with a focus on water and biodiversity management and Indigenous and First Nations partnerships.
She began her career with Canada’s Environmental Effects Monitoring Program. She has extensive operational experience as a compliance manager in the energy and mining sectors. Sylvie has also led reclamation/restoration projects in subarctic to desert climates, including wetlands and prairies.
She holds a master’s degree in environmental biology from University of Moncton and a PhD in Biological Oceanography from Université du Québec à Rimouski.
Our Board of Directors
Our Board members are world-class experts in their fields, providing technical and strategic guidance to the Torngat Metals executive team.
Maryse Bélanger
Chair
Ms. Bélanger has over 35 years of experience working with senior gold companies globally, with a proven track record of operational excellence and efficiency, as well as technical studies and services.
Ms. Bélanger was Chair of IAMGOLD from 2022-2023, successfully advancing the company’s flagship Côté Mine toward production and repositioning IAMGOLD as a mid-tier gold producer. From 2016 to 2020, Ms. Bélanger was President, COO and Director of Atlantic Gold, where she guided the company’s Touquoy Mine through construction to production, and the eventual acquisition of Atlantic Gold by St. Barbara for C$722 million.
From 2014 to 2016, she served as CEO and Managing Director of Mirabela Nickel Ltd., where she is credited with the successful turnaround of the Santa Rita mine in Brazil. From 2011 to 2014, Ms. Bélanger was a senior executive with Goldcorp, where she was ultimately appointed Senior Vice President, Technical Services. Before Goldcorp, Ms. Bélanger was Director, Technical Services for Kinross Gold Corporation for Brazil and Chile.
Ms. Bélanger is an active Board Member of Equinox Gold and Graymont, and has served on the boards of True Gold, Newmarket Gold, Plateau Energy Metals, and Atlantic Gold. She was recognized twice by the Women in Mining UK “WIM (UK)” 100 Global Inspirational Women in Mining Project as one of the most inspirational Global Women in Mining. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Geology, a graduate certificate in Geostatistics, ICD.D designation.
Christopher Darby
Global Head of Venture Investments and Senior Managing Director, Cerberus Capital Florida, LLC
Mr. Darby serves as Global Head of Venture Investments. He joined Cerberus in 2023 following a 17-year tenure as President and CEO of In-Q-Tel, the independent strategic investment firm supporting the missions of the Central Intelligence Agency and the broader Intelligence Community.
Mr. Darby was previously Vice President and General Manager at Intel overseeing its Middleware Products Division. Mr. Darby joined Intel in 2005 through its acquisition of Sarvega, a venture-backed supplier of XML Networking and Security products, where he was President and CEO. Prior to Sarvega, Mr. Darby was the Chairman and CEO of @stake, an internet security consulting firm ultimately acquired by Symantec. Earlier in his career, Mr. Darby served as President and CEO of Interpath Communications, a facilities-based ASP later acquired by US Internetworking. Mr. Darby also held several executive positions at Digital Equipment Corporation (now, HP) with responsibility for telecom industry initiatives, corporate strategy, and alliances. He began his career at Bell Northern Research.
Mr. Darby is a graduate of the University of Western Ontario.
Nicholas P. Robinson
Global Head of Critical Minerals & Battery Materials, and Senior Managing Director,
Cerberus Capital Management
Mr. Robinson is Global Head of Critical Minerals & Battery Materials and a Senior Managing Director on the Supply Chain and Strategic Opportunities team, which invests in businesses driving next-generation technologies and capabilities that advance supply chain integrity. He serves on the Board of Directors for EOS Energy Enterprises, a domestic producer of zinc-bromide battery energy storage systems, and Torngat Metals, a light and heavy rare earth development company based in Quebec, Canada. Mr. Robinson previously served as the Co-Chief Investment Officer of Cerberus Telecom Acquisition Corporation until the completion of its business combination with KORE Wireless in 2021.
Prior to that, he served as the Firm’s Head Trader, and was part of Cerberus’ Corporate Credit strategy. Mr. Robinson joined Cerberus in 2011 from Morgan Stanley where he was an Executive Director, trading corporate loans & bonds. He started his career in 2004 as a Credit Analyst in Goldman Sachs’ Leveraged Loan Group.
Mr. Robinson graduated from Acadia University in Nova Scotia, Canada.
Alberto Galeone
President, CEO, Treasurer
and Director, Sherbrooke Capital
Mr. Galeone joined Sherbrooke Street Capital (“SSC”) as CEO, Treasurer, and Director in October 2004 and added the role of President in March 2008. He has over 30 years of experience in brokerage dealings with Canadian and international institutional accounts. Before joining SSC, he spent five years at Canaccord Capital, where he was part of the Institutional Fixed Income Team. Previously, he was a Partner, Director, and President of the institutional brokerage arm of the Republic National Bank of New York-Canada.
Cerberus Capital Management
Our cornerstone investor and strategic partner
- As a global leader in alternative investing with approximately US$ 60 billion in assets, Cerberus provides not only financial strength but also access to world class expertise, and extensive senior relationships with government, industry and influencers.
- Cerberus has a long-term investment horizon and a commitment to the Strange Lake project, having invested US$ 50 million in Torngat Metals, the single largest rare earths investment in Canada.
- Cerberus’ ESG values for its portfolio companies directly aligns with Torngat’s commitment to IESG leadership.
- Torngat Metals is the first critical minerals investment within Cerberus’ Supply Chain Opportunities Platform.