Australia’s Regulator Takes Legal Action Against AVZ Minerals for Concealing DRC Lithium Project Dispute
Australia’s corporate regulator has filed a lawsuit against AVZ Minerals Ltd. and two of its directors, accusing the company of failing to disclose a major legal dispute with the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) over its stake in one of the world’s largest lithium projects.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) announced on Tuesday that it has initiated civil proceedings against the Perth-based miner, alleging breaches of continuous disclosure obligations and misleading and deceptive conduct related to the company’s communications with investors.
AVZ holds a 75% interest in the Manono Lithium Project through its subsidiary Dathcom Mining. The company has been embroiled in a legal battle with the DRC government since 2022 over ownership rights to the project, which contains some of the world’s richest hard-rock lithium deposits a key material for electric vehicle batteries.
ASIC also alleged that Managing Director Nigel Ferguson and Technical Director Graeme Johnston breached their director duties by authorizing market filings that were “false or misleading” and failed to include material information about the dispute.
“We allege Mr. Ferguson and Mr. Johnston failed to inform investors of the ongoing issues for nearly 12 months,” said ASIC Deputy Chair Sarah Court.
“They allegedly failed to take reasonable steps to ensure AVZ met its disclosure obligations and that its statements to the ASX were accurate and not misleading.”
AVZ’s shares were suspended from trading in May 2022 and the company was delisted from the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) in May 2024 following prolonged uncertainty surrounding its Congo operations.
The company has not yet commented publicly on the lawsuit.
About the Author
