Leadership Team
Explorers. Mine builders. Innovators. Financiers
Gold Candle’s core values – integrity, accountability, teamwork, excellence – guiding every decision we make.
Executive Team
Gold Candle’s executive team has the operational and financial skillset to develop the Kerr project.
Rick Howes
Rick Howes is a seasoned mining engineer with over 40 years of experience in operations, project development and corporate leadership. He joined Gold Candle as Chief Executive Officer in June 2025.
Rick was most recently President and CEO of Reunion Gold Corporation, which was acquired by G Mining Ventures Corp. in 2024. He currently serves as Chairman of Torex Gold Resources Inc. and previously held senior leadership roles at Vale and Dundee Precious Metals. As CEO of Dundee from 2013 to 2020, he led the company through a period of significant growth, transforming it from a junior producer to a mid-tier gold company with a diversified asset base.
Throughout his career, Rick has overseen large-scale projects across Canada, Europe, and Africa, including the expansion of the Chelopech Mine in Bulgaria, the Tsumeb Smelter in Namibia, and the development of the Ada Tepe open-pit mine. He is widely recognized for driving innovation, operational excellence and safety, earning the National Ryan Award for mine safety and being named Outstanding Innovator of 2016 by the International Mining Technology Hall of Fame.
Rick holds a Bachelor of Applied Science (B.Sc.) with Honours in Mining Engineering from Queen’s University and is a member of the Institute of Corporate Directors.
Rick Howes
Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
Léon Grondin-LeBlanc
Léon Grondin-LeBlanc brings over 13 years of operational, project development and execution experience between Quebec and Ontario. Most recently Mr. Grondin-LeBlanc served as General Manager of Alamos Gold’s Young-Davidson Mine. Prior to his role as General Manager, Mr. Grondin-LeBlanc held roles of increasing responsibility, including overseeing the underground expansion of Young-Davidson and the Phase 2 expansion of the Island Gold mine. He started his career with Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd. with the Laronde Mine where he held progressively senior engineering positions. He is bilingual in English, and French and holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Mining Engineering from Laval University and an MBA from the University of Fredericton. He is a licensed Professional Engineer in Ontario and Quebec.
Leon LeBlanc
President & COO
Hannes Portmann
Hannes Portmann brings over 20 years of experience in the mining and resource sectors to his role as Chief Financial Officer of Gold Candle. A mining engineer and chartered professional accountant, Hannes has held senior leadership positions with both private and public companies, including serving as CFO at Cabot Management and Marathon Gold, and as President and CEO of New Gold Inc. He also served as a director of SilverCrest Metals until its $1.7 billion sale to Coeur Mining in 2025. At Gold Candle, Hannes is responsible for financial reporting, planning, corporate development, and investor relations. He joined the company’s Board of Directors in 2024 and became CFO in July 2025.
Hannes is a Chartered Professional Accountant and holds a Bachelor of Science in Mining Engineering from Queen’s University and a Masters of Management and Professional Accounting from the Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto.
Hannes Portmann
Chief Financial Officer
Alasdair Federico
Alasdair Federico brings over 15 years of executive and legal experience in the mining sector to Gold Candle. He has held senior leadership roles including Vice-President, General Counsel & Corporate Secretary at Lake Shore Gold, Executive Vice-President of Corporate Affairs and Social Responsibility at Kirkland Lake Gold, and Chief Financial Officer at Atlas Salt. At Gold Candle Alasdair is responsible for legal and compliance matters, corporate governance, human resources, and public affairs, while also serving as Corporate Secretary to the Board of Directors.
He plays a key role on the Executive Leadership Team as the company advances toward a planned initial public offering in 2026.
Alasdair holds a Bachelor of Commerce and a Law degree combining business and legal expertise to support strategic growth and governance.
Alasdair Federico
VP, GC and Corporate Secretary
Dean Crick
Dean Crick is a professional geologist with over 35 years of experience primarily in Northern Ontario. Most recently Dean held the position of Canadian Exploration Manager for Alamos Gold where was instrumental in exploration successes at their Canadian operations Young-Davidson, Island Gold in addition to their Lynn Lake’s advanced development project. Prior to that, Dean worked for TMAC as Director of Geoscience. He also held the role of Director of Geology, Chief Geologist and Exploration Manager for several well-established operators across Canada. Leading teams from discovery to production for both open-pit and underground deposits. Dean has a B.Sc. in Geological Sciences from Brock University, a M.Sc. in Economic Geology from Laurentian University and is a Professional Geologist in the province or Ontario. He has been an author and Qualified Person for several NI 43-101 Technical Reports through his professional career.
Dean Crick
Vice-President of Exploration
Board of Directors
The Directors of Gold Candle have decades of Board experience marked by robust corporate governance.
Pierre Lassonde
Pierre Lassonde is a mining executive with decades of experience in the industry. He holds a B.A., BSc, MBA, P.Eng., CFA and Hon Ph.D.’s from the Universities of Toronto, Montreal, Ryerson, York, Western, Concordia, Mt. Allison and Utah.
Mr. Lassonde co-founded Franco-Nevada Mining Corporation in 1982. Acquired by Newmont Mining Corp in February 2002, it became the largest gold mining company in the world. He served as Chairman of the World Gold Council from 2005 to 2009. In 2008, Franco-Nevada came back to the public market. It is now the leading mining royalty company with a market capitalization over US$30B. Mr. Lassonde is Chairman Emeritus.
A dedicated philanthropist, Mr. Lassonde has been a strong supporter of education and the arts. He has served as Board Chair of the Musée National des Beaux-Arts du Québec (MNBAQ) and the Canada Council for the Arts and has been a board member of the Riopelle Foundation since 2019. In March 2020, he was appointed Principal and Chair of Polytechnique Montréal.
In 2002 Pierre was made a Member of the Order of Canada and was promoted to Grand Officer in 2022. He became a Grand Officer of the National Order of Québec in 2019. Mr. Lassonde is a fellow of The Canadian Academy of Engineering. He was inducted into the Canadian Mining Hall of Fame and the National Mining Hall of Fame USA.
Recently, Mr. Lassonde’s wholly owned investment, Firelight Investments Ltd. has been very active in the creation and development in the early stages of a number of companies, including Foran Mining Corp, Orla Mining Ltd. and Atex Resources Inc.
Pierre Lassonde
Chair of the Board
Michael Berns
Michael Berns founded Gold Candle in 2015, and previously served as its Executive Chairman and CEO. He has been active in the natural resource industry for 45 years as an executive, advisor and investor. A graduate of the Wharton School, and a NY-based attorney, he has advised and represented hundreds of gold and other natural resource issuers on financings, stock exchange listings, regulatory compliance and M&A transactions. His law firm spearheaded U.S. regulatory advancements facilitating the integration of global capital markets. He has advised on M&A transactions valued in excess of $800 billion.
Michael Berns
Company Founder and Director
Ebe Scherkus
Ebe Scherkus is a mining professional with 48 years of experience. Mr. Scherkus spent 27 years with Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd. (AEM) starting as Project Manager at the LaRonde Project in Abitibi, Quebéc culminating in its discovery, construction, and the foundation of AEM. He progressed to Mine Manager of the LaRonde Mine, and finally President and Chief Operating Officer of AEM. In this role, he was instrumental in the development of the Kittila Mine, Lapa Mine, Goldex Mine, Meadowbank Mine, and Pinot Altos Mine. Agnico Eagle transitioned from a single producing mine to an international multi mine gold producer. Mr. Scherkus formerly served as the President of the Quebec Mining Association, Director of Richmont Mines Limited, Executive Chairman of Premier Gold Mines Limited, and Chairman of Stornoway Diamond Corporation Limited. He was inducted into the Canadian Mining Hall of Fame in 2020.
Ebe Scherkus
Lead Director
Jaime Hartman
Jaime Hartman who has more than 30 years of experience in trading and pricing equities, convertible bonds, and options. He is experienced in all aspects of debt and equity investments, including sourcing, and negotiating transactions. Mr. Hartman began his career at JP Morgan & Co. in Brazil in 1989 and then moved to Bankers Trust in New York in 1990 where he was responsible for trading equity derivatives, convertible bonds, and Latin America equity and fixed income derivatives. He then served as a director with Credit Suisse First Boston, trading equity derivatives. Following that, he became a general partner of WEC Asset Management, LLC, a New York-based asset manager. Then Mr. Hartman served as a director of DKR Oasis Capital Management LP, a multi-billion dollar, multi-strategy hedge fund. Now, Mr. Hartman is a partner at Genesis Capital Advisors LLC, a company he co-founded.
Jaime Hartman
Ethan Benovitz
Ethan Benovitz is a seasoned investor with over 25 years of successful experience investing across healthcare, technology, and metals and mining sectors. He began his career as a corporate attorney after earning his JD from Harvard Law School. Ethan’s deep expertise in corporate finance and governance make him a trusted advisor to a variety of corporations and executives.
Ethan Benovitz
Louise Grondin
Louise Grondin retired in January 2021 as Senior Vice President People and Culture at Agnico Eagle Mines Limited, after almost twenty years with the company. During her tenure she occupied various senior positions in environment, health and safety, community relations, communication and human resources. Prior to that, she spent eight years as Director HSE and Human Resources at the Selbaie Mine in Quebec (Billiton Canada). She had started her career at Ontario Hydro in Toronto, where she spent twelve years in various engineering positions. Ms. Grondin holds a bachelor’s degree in physics from the University of Ottawa, a Master degree in Sciences from McGill University and has completed her Mechanical Engineering curriculum at the University of Toronto. She is a member of the Ordre des Ingénieurs in Quebec, of the Professional Engineers of Ontario and is a fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering. She is also a member of the Champion Iron Board of Directors and sits on the Board of the Canadian Mining Hall of Fame.
Louise Grondin
Geoffrey Belsher
Geoffrey Belsher has played a leadership role across the financial services industry in Canada for over three decades. He worked as Managing Director and Global Co-Head of Wholesale Banking for CIBC in Toronto from 2009 to 2015 where he also served on the Executive Committee of CIBC. Additionally, he served as President of the Canadian operations of Barclays Capital, and its predecessor Lehman Brothers Canada from 2006 to 2008, where he formed the Investment Banking offices in Toronto and Calgary. Currently Mr. Belsher is Barclays’ Chairman and Country Chief Executive Officer for Canada.
Geoffrey Belsher
Michael Jalonen
Michael Jalonen had a 33-year career as a respected mine analyst, specializing in precious metals, with Bank of America Securities and was regularly ranked as a leading mining analyst in North America. Michael covered twenty companies in the North American gold and silver producer sector and five senior precious metal royalty and streaming companies. He created detailed operating and financial models with long-term forecasts for companies under coverage, which led to valuation analyses to estimate company asset values. He regularly published multiple industry thematic reports on M&A activity in the global gold sector. He holds a BSc (Honours) in Geology from the University of Windsor, an MBA from McMaster University and is a designated CFA.
Michael Jalonen
