Directors & Management
Michael Gunning, PhD, PGeo
Founder and Executive Chairman
Dr. Gunning is a Professional Geologist with over 30 years of experience in mineral exploration and geological research. His experience spans work in federal and provincial geological surveys, exploration in North and South America with Cominco (now Teck), and proven executive leadership in the junior exploration sector, including recent success in the sale of two companies. He is extensively published, holds several industry awards, and is past-president of numerous industry organizations.
Upon completion of his PhD at the University of Western Ontario, Dr. Gunning spent nearly a decade leading global exploration projects, and learning the business of exploration within a multi-national and fully integrated mining and smelting company at Cominco. Following Cominco, Dr. Gunning accepted the role of lead Mineral Deposits Research Geologist with the Saskatchewan Geological Survey, which included both original, field-based mapping and research and mineral industry reporting. He also chaired the Energy file within the governments Strategic Development initiative.
This work led Dr. Gunning to the uranium junior exploration sector in Vancouver. As CEO of Hathor Exploration Limited, he led successive resource and PEA milestones for the Roughrider uranium deposit discovery, and he guided Hathor successfully through a hostile takeover bid and a $654 M acquisition by Rio Tinto in 2012, which was one of the top ten M&A deals in the global mining sector that year. He built on that success as Executive Chairman of Alpha Minerals which was acquired in 2013 for $190 M following the discovery of the Patterson Lake uranium deposit in Saskatchewan. Overall, Dr. Gunning successfully led the financing of more than $60 M in venture capital in three successive companies over a nine year period towards exploration and development in the uranium sector in Canada.
Dr. Gunning founded VR in 2014 to pursue greenfields exploration for new Critical Metals discoveries in North America, and has served as its President and CEO for the past decade, since inception. During that time, he successfully raised in excess of $20 M to fund active and continuous exploration over a ten year period.
Dr. Gunning is a past-President of the Saskatchewan Geological Society and the Society of Economic Geology Student Chapter at Western. He served on the AME BC Roundup Committee and presented at the annual AME Exploration Safety Workshop for more than a decade, and he was awarded by the industry with both the prestigious Dave Barr Award for Leadership in Exploration Health & Safety for 2011 and the Colin Spence Award for Excellence in Global Mineral Exploration for 2012.
Having played field hockey at the club, university, national and international level, he is a past Director of Field Hockey Canada and Chair of the Canadian Men’s Field Hockey Olympic Trust, and he holds several provincial awards recognizing service to sport.
Keith Inman
Director
Mr. Inman is a partner in the Business Law group of Pushor Mitchell LLP, a full-service law firm located in Kelowna, British Columbia, with a practice focused on advising emerging and mid-market companies on corporate/commercial and securities law related matters, including corporate finance and M&A transactions.
Craig Lindsay
Director
Mr. Lindsay is the Managing Director of Arbutus Grove Capital Corp. He has over 25 years of experience in corporate finance, investment banking and business development in both North America and Asia. His focus has been on mineral resources in the western United States, most recent serving as Founder, President and CEO of Otis Gold Corp. until its sale to Excellon Resources Inc. (TSX) in 2020. Previously, Mr. Lindsay was Founder, President and CEO of Magnum Uranium Corp. until its merger with Energy Fuels Inc. in July 2009. Prior to that he was a Vice President in the Corporate Finance and Investment Banking Group at PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP and a Partner in the Pacific Rim Group, a financial and business services company located in Hong Kong. Managing Director of Arbutus Grove Capital Corp. since 2003.
Lindsay was a founding Director of Malaspina Capital Ltd. (ASE) and was responsible for identifying its merger with Miranda Mining Corp, a Mexican based gold producer that was subsequently acquired by Wheaton River Minerals. He was also a Founding Director of Rebel Capital Inc (TSXV), and was responsible for identifying and negotiating its merger with Electric Royalties Ltd. He was a Director of Philippine Metals Inc. from 2011 to 2022 and has been a Director of successor company Revolve Renewable Power Corp. since 2022. He is currently a Director of Excellon Resources Inc (TSX), Electric Royalties Ltd (TSXV), Silver North Resources Ltd. (TSXV).
Mr. Lindsay has a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of British Columbia, an MBA from Dalhousie University and is a Chartered Financial Analyst. He is the Immediate Past National Chair of the Hong Kong Canada Business Association and former President of the Vancouver Section, a past Chair of the Family Services of Greater Vancouver and a member of the Board of Governors of Crofton House School.
Justin Daley, MSc, PGeo
President and CEO
Mr. Daley is a Professional Geologist with over a decade of global experience in grassroots and early-stage mineral exploration. He is VR’s founding Project Geologist and VP Exploration.
He obtained an M.Sc. in Mineral Exploration from Laurentian University in Sudbury, ON, followed by a Master’s in Business Analytics from the Harvard Business School, in the School of Applied Science, where he focused on the digital transformation of business, data analytics and applied AI.
Mr. Daley has worked throughout the Americas, in Canada, the USA, Mexico, Peru and Chile, and in Turkey exploring for copper and gold for Teck Resources, Silver Standard (now SSR Mining), Centerra and Pretium. During this time, he gained an in-depth knowledge of porphyry, epithermal and VMS mineral systems, experience in the integration of exploration datasets within scientific mineral deposit models, and an expertise in the application of GIS technologies.
Blaine Bailey, CPA, CGA
Chief Financial Officer
Mr. Bailey is a Chartered Professional Accountant, CGA working with public and private companies over the past 20 years. Mr. Bailey brings complementary skills to the team in areas of finance, administration, and financial reporting. Mr. Bailey is currently the CFO of GR Silver Mining Ltd., Panorama Capital Corp., and Cirrus Gold Corp.
Mr. Bailey received his Bachelor of Commerce degree (Honours) from the University of Manitoba in 1977, and qualified for the CPA, CGA designation in British Columbia in 1983. Mr. Bailey has served in the capacity of accountant for Molson Brewery B.C. Ltd. and controller for Nabob Coffee Co. with head offices in Zurich, Switzerland.
Cyndi Laval
Corporate Secretary
Ms. Laval is a partner at the law firm of Gowling WLG (Canada) LLP, Vancouver, B.C. and is the leader of the firm’s Corporate Finance, M&A and Private Equity Group in Canada.
Ms. Laval practices M&A, Corporate Finance and Mining Law, and has over 20 years of experience. Her practice involves advising issuers on merger transactions, corporate finance activities, such as equity and debt financings, stock exchange listings, corporate and securities regulatory compliance, corporate reorganizations, corporate governance, and mining-related transactions.
Ms. Laval was named Vancouver “Lawyer of the Year” for Mining by the Best Lawyers in Canada in its 2017 edition. She has also been named one of Vancouver’s 30 leading lawyers by the National Post and is recognized as a leading lawyer in The Best Lawyers in Canada, Legal 500 Canada, Lexpert’s Leading Canadian Lawyers in Global Mining, Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory, Who’s Who Legal: Canada and Who’s Who Legal: 100.
Prior to joining private practice, Ms. Laval worked in the policy department of the now TSX-V. Ms. Laval was a member of the TSX-V’s Local Advisory Committee from 2006 to 2013 and an instructor of the TSX-V Rules and Tools Corporate Governance Workshop from 2004 to 2010.
Terese Gieselman
Corporate Compliance
Terese is the founder and President of MinCo Corporate Management Inc., a corporate services company in Kelowna, BC. Ms. Gieselman has 37 years of international experience with junior mining and exploration companies listed on the TSX, TSXV, OTCBB, NASDAQ and AMEX, in the roles of CFO, Treasurer, Corporate Secretary and director. During her tenure in the resource sector, Ms. Gieselman has accumulated an extensive background in corporate and financial reporting and compliance for Canada and the United States, including particularly relevant experience in financings, treasury, international corporate structure and financial reporting in Mexico, Peru, Chile, Argentina and Zimbabwe.