Geological and Engineering Team

A.I.S. Resources Limited has assembled a world class team, who have extensive knowledge across all sectors of the lithium process – from discovery to production.

Phillip Thomas, President & CEO 

Phillip specialises in finance and capital raising, management of mining companies, planning, development and management of mining projects, having established a number of significant exploration and mining projects in Mexico, USA, Chile, Argentina, Arizona and Australia.

He is experienced at raising capital for mineral based projects around the world and geological exploration in the gold, copper, lithium brines and iron ore sector. He was Exploration Director and CEO of Admiralty Resources from 2003-2008. He worked on the Nazca San Pedro mine, a gold porphyry mesothermal deposit in Peru in 2010 and directed the mine plan engineering, geology and mining activities. The mine lies within the Nazca-Ocoña metallogenic gold belt in the mining district of San Juan de Chorunga. The area is dominated by metamorphic, igneous, volcanic and sedimentary structures belonging to the Precambrian as well as quarternary.

Other past projects include an extensive review in 2014 of the Secret Pass Tin Cup gold mine in Arizona USA where 127 drill holes had been completed. He reviewed the geophysics, geochemistry, bulk testing, metallurgy, fluid inclusion chemistry and mapping. Phil did a correlation study on assays and proposed a production schedule as Director of Exploration for Arrowstar Resources Limited. In 2016 Phil worked on IRL Limited’s massive gold mine in Peru with a stated JORC resource of 1.1 million ounces of Indicated and Measured estimate. In 2017 Phil investigated the Julian Gold mine in California USA and wrote a NI43-101 compliant report for the vendors.  This was a gabbro-hosted deposit that had metamorphic altered shales and acid granites. From 2008 to 2018 Phil has reviewed and visited more than 15 gold mines in Peru, Arizona, Alaska and Papua New Guinea and has a substantial amount of research and exploration data.

Phillip holds a Masters Business Marketing degree with high distinction from Monash University, a Bachelor of Science (Geology) degree and a Diploma in Finance. He is a member of the Australian Institute of Geoscientists and a certified Mineral Valuer with the Australasian Institute of Mineral Valuers and Appraisers.

Denis M. Walsh, Chief Geologist

As Chief Geologist, Denis is integral to AIS’ success and the future development of our Fosterville-Toolleen, Yalgogrin and Kingston properties. He has deep experience exploring in the Lachlan Fold Belt Victoria and NSW for gold, silver, copper, platinum, nickel/cobalt/scandium. And previously Denis was the Senior Contract Exploration Geologist with Kirkland Lake Gold guiding a team of up to 6 geologists exploring over 1,400 sq km regional exploration tenure surrounding Fosterville.

Denis’s substantial experience includes 20 years at Yalgogrin EL5891, and the last 18 months focused at Kirkland Lake Gold’s Fosterville operation. His recent role included identification, assessment and communication of targets and programs to support formulation of significant forward-looking budgets and assist delivery of existing budget programs. Work also involved drill tender preparations, prospect reviews, targeting criteria and budget data for tenement applications. Typical duties also included targeting drillholes, planning and interpretation of deep (1km depth) drilling program under 100m Murray Basin sediments utilizing partial leach soil geochemistry, geophysics datasets including gravity, magnetics, IP, AEM and downhole geophysics. Assessment of programs involved structural logging, stratigraphic interpretation/section reconstruction and multielement alteration data review followed by integration of all geological, geochemical and geophysical datasets.

Denis graduated from RMIT University, Melbourne with a Bachelor of Applied Science in Applied Geology in 1993. He is a member of the Australian Institute of Geoscientists. His past experience also included working in New England NSW (Diamonds), Central goldfields WA Norseman area (gold, nickel/copper/platinum/palladium), Gawler Craton in SA (gold), Gippsland and Otway basins in Victoria (geothermal), Cooper Basin and Gawler Craton in South Australia (geothermal), and Victoria and Tasmania (environmental assessments).

Dr. Rodney Boucher, Advisory Board Member, Gold Exploration Specialist 

Dr. Rodney Boucher began his career in the petroleum industry investigating the tectonic setting, structural development and sedimentation within sedimentary basins. He moved to Bendigo in 1997 and commenced working in turbidite-hosted gold deposits at Fosterville, Bendigo, Ballarat and numerous smaller deposits. He has worked on turbidite-hosted and other styles of mineral deposits throughout the country.

Rodney specialises in grass-roots exploration, including mapping, geophysics, geochemistry, drilling – and is a renowned specialist in Turbidites encountered in Victoria Gold properties. He is presently consulting to Dart Mining for orogenic gold, porphyry Mo/Cu/Au & lithium-pegmatites, (Creswick), Bora Bora Resources (St. Arnaud), North Ballarat (Little Bendigo). Previously he was involved with Berry Deep Leads (alluvial Au); Fosterville, Bendigo, Ballarat, Lockington, Tandarra, Davenport Ranges (NT), Tanami (NT) (orogenic Au); Stuart Shelf (IOCGU); and Myrtle Creek, Tanami (NT) (porphyry). He is also a past lecturer in Structural Geology, Sedimentology and Geophysics at La Trobe University Bendigo, is the current Vice Chair and past Chair of AIG Victoria. He has been consulting to gold exploration companies in central Victoria. He is an Honorary Fellow University Of Melbourne, Geology Faculty, earned a PhD University of South Australia, Structural Geology and Tectonics, and has a Bachelor of Science Geology degree, First Class Honours.

Dr. Carlos Sorentino, Chief Chemical Engineer
Dr. Sorentino has degrees in engineering and economics. He specialises in the valuation, planning, development and management of mining projects, having established a number of significant exploration projects in South America. He has completed a number of major lithium projects in Argentina . Dr. Sorentino has specialised in the exploration, metallurgy and development of the mineral resources of evaporitic deposits, particularly in the Andes Cordillera. From 1996 to 2001 he prepared the detailed engineering and a bankable feasibility study for the exploitation of the Salar del Rio Grande, and from 2004 to 2008 developed the basic and detail engineering and directed the establishment of a pilot plant for a Lithium project in the Salar of Rincon, both of them in Salta, Argentina. More recently, he formulated a detailed business plan for the exploitation of lithium in the Salar of Pozuelos.

Dr. Sorentino’s doctoral dissertation was in the field of mineral economics. He also holds a Masters of Environmental Studies degree, a Bachelor of Engineering (Chemistry) and a Diploma in Radioisotopes Technology. He is a Fellow and a Chartered Professional of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, a member of the Mineral Industry Consultants Association, a member of the American Chemical Society and a Director and Certified Mineral Valuer with the Australasian Institute of Mineral Valuers and Appraisers.

Dr. Sorentino holds directorships in a number of private corporations in Australia, Argentina and elsewhere. He is an honorary Associate in Macquarie University, Wollongong University, University of Jujuy (Argentina) and in the Kalgoorlie School of Mines.