American Rare Earths Ltd (ASX:ARR, OTCQX:ARRNF) has appointed former Newmont Corporation (NYSE:NEM, TSX:NGT, ASX:NEM, XETRA:NMM) executive Nick Lissolo as vice president of corporate development and strategy, strengthening its leadership bench as it advances its flagship Halleck Creek rare earths project in Wyoming.

The company said Lissolo would take on a central role in shaping corporate strategy, capital markets initiatives and portfolio development, with a focus on partnerships, project evaluation and long-term value creation.

The appointment comes at a pivotal stage for American Rare Earths, which is progressing Halleck Creek as a potential large-scale, domestically sourced rare earths asset in the United States. The project has drawn increasing attention amid efforts to build secure supply chains outside China, particularly for critical minerals used in defence, advanced technologies and electrification.

Lissolo brings 17 years of experience across global mining operations, most recently serving as head of evaluation modelling at Newmont, where he led financial modelling and capital allocation analysis across the company’s international portfolio.

During his tenure, he held senior roles spanning project evaluation, financial reporting and regional finance leadership, working on large-scale projects ranging from US$100 million to US$5 billion. His background includes supporting board-level investment decisions, portfolio optimisation and strategic trade-offs across complex mining assets.

“The addition of Nick to our senior leadership team marks an important step in American Rare Earths’ evolution from exploration and evaluation toward development,” CEO Mark Wall said.

“His experience in large-scale project evaluation, capital allocation, and enterprise-level financial planning at one of the world’s leading gold producers will be invaluable as we continue to de-risk and grow the American Rare Earths Halleck Creek project and our broader portfolio.”

Lissolo is a Wyoming native and a graduate of the University of Wyoming, bringing local knowledge alongside his global mining and finance experience.

He highlighted Halleck Creek’s potential within the broader push for secure rare earths supply.

“I am excited to join American Rare Earths at such a pivotal time for both the company and the critical minerals sector,” Lissolo said.

“As a Wyoming native, I see tremendous potential in the Halleck Creek Project to contribute to a secure, domestic rare earths supply chain, and I look forward to working with the team to unlock that potential for shareholders, stakeholders, and the state of Wyoming.”

The appointment builds on a series of recent developments for American Rare Earths as it sharpens its focus on large-scale resource definition and downstream processing opportunities. Recent updates have highlighted progress at Halleck Creek, including supplying ore to a US Department of Energy-backed research program, while the company has also been reviewing multi-commodity potential at its La Paz project in Arizona.

With increasing US policy support for domestic critical minerals production and growing demand for rare earth elements across defence and clean energy sectors, the company is positioning Halleck Creek as a cornerstone asset in the emerging North American supply chain.

Lissolo’s addition is expected to support that strategy by strengthening financial discipline, advancing project evaluation and helping secure strategic partnerships as the project moves closer to development.