Advantage Lithium replaces CEO in wake of college admissions scandal (updated)

East West Minerals

14/03/2019 17:20

(Adds comment from Sidoo's lawyer, background, bylines)
    By Ernest Scheyder and Cassandra Garrison
    March 14 (Reuters) - Advantage Lithium Corp  AAL.V  said on
Thursday it has temporarily replaced Chief Executive David Sidoo
as he battles U.S. fraud charges connected to a sweeping college
admissions scandal.
    The company has named board member Callum Grant, an engineer
by training, as its interim president and said it would move
forward with plans to develop an Argentine lithium deposit.
    Sidoo also stepped down as president and CEO of
Vancouver-based East West Petroleum  EW.V  on Thursday.
    Sidoo, 59, was arrested last Friday and charged with
conspiracy to commit fraud for allegedly paying $200,000 to the
scam's accused mastermind, William "Rick" Singer, to arrange for
people to take the SAT admissions test for his two sons,
according to U.S. court documents reviewed by
Reuters. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N2101AP
    Sidoo plans to travel to a Massachusetts court to face the
charges, according to his attorney, Richard Schonfeld, who
requested that "people don't rush to judgment in the meantime."
    Lithium is a key ingredient in electric vehicle batteries
and a plethora of smaller miners have launched projects in
recent years to supply the white metal to Tesla Inc  TSLA.O ,
Volkswagen AG  VOWG_p.DE  and other automakers.
    Ford Motor Co  F.N , the second-largest U.S. automaker, said
earlier this week it was considering inking supply deals with a
lithium producer.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N20Z0RV 
    Canada-based Advantage Lithium has undertaken a series of
engineering studies necessary to move forward on development of
its Cauchari lithium deposit, though it has yet to say when the
project could come online. 
    Sidoo had been actively meeting with investors, analysts,
regulators and others to promote the company. It was not
immediately clear how his exit would affect development plans.
    "All plans are the same to put Advantage into production at
some point," spokesman Max Sali told Reuters on Thursday.  
    Orocobre, Advantage Lithium's largest shareholder, was not
immediately available for comment. 
    The company's Argentine project is located near similar
projects run by Lithium Americas Corp  LAC.TO  and Orocobre.


 (Reporting by Ernest Scheyder and Cassandra Garrison;
Additional reporting by Nia Williams; Editing by Richard Chang)
 ((ernest.scheyder@thomsonreuters.com; Twitter: @ErnestScheyder;
+1-713-210-8512; Reuters Messaging:
ernest.scheyder.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))