Published: November 6, 2026 |

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Ambler Metals has appointed David Thomas as senior vice president of Project Development. Thomas will lead engineering and project development for the Arctic Project, working alongside Ambler Metals president Ron Rimelman as the joint venture advances the project through permitting and toward a construction decision.

“As the Arctic Project advances through permitting, our focus is shifting from defining the project to preparing to build it, and Dave brings the expertise we need at this stage. He has spent four decades designing, permitting, building and operating mines — including Arctic developments and, here in Alaska, operations such as Red Dog, Fort Knox, Pogo and Kensington,” said Ron Rimelman, president of Ambler Metals.

“His engineering leadership on feasibility-level studies, combined with his hands-on construction and start-up experience, will be invaluable as we translate this season’s engineering data into final mine design and lay the groundwork for development. We are delighted to welcome him to the Ambler Metals team,” added Rimelman.

David Thomas is a civil engineer with more than 40 years of experience in underground and open-pit mining across North America and internationally, including expertise in Arctic developments. His work spans mine complex design, permitting, project development, start-ups, operations, and closure. He most recently served as chief operating officer of Freedom Copper and, prior to that, as vice president of Ausenco USA, where he provided engineering oversight for preliminary economic assessments, pre-feasibility studies, and feasibility studies for mining projects in Alaska and across the United States. He has also held senior roles with New Mexico Copper and Sabre Gold, and has been involved in mine permitting in Alaska, Washington, Arizona, Utah, and New Mexico. His Alaska experience includes work at the Red Dog, Fort Knox, Pogo, and Kensington mines during his tenure as president of Alaska Interstate Construction. Internationally, Thomas served as general director for Nordgold, working on projects in Siberia and Africa, and as EPCM manager for Newmont’s Hope Bay project in Nunavut, Canada. He holds a Bachelor of Science from the University of Washington.

Ambler Metals is an independently operated joint venture formed by South32 Limited and Trilogy Metals for the exploration and development of the UKMP and advancing projects in the Ambler Mining District in collaboration with NANA. Ambler Metals is an Alaskan company with offices in Anchorage and Fairbanks.

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