# Juan Pablo Vargas de la Vega Managing Director ## Career chronology - **Current role at cutoff; start date not established in the reviewed records: Galan Lithium** — Managing Director. [Annual Report 30 June 2025]() (Issuer management page, Juan Pablo Vargas de la Vega entry) - **Founded before Galan’s 2018 acquisition; precise date not given in company annual report: Blue Sky Lithium Pty Ltd** — Founder; vendor of original Argentine assets to Galan. [Annual Report 2026]() (printed p. 2, Managing Director biography) - **Prior to or alongside Galan; dates and contract type not disclosed in reviewed profiles: BHP** — Copper-project consultant. [Annual Report 2026]() (printed p. 2, Managing Director biography) - **Prior to or alongside Galan; dates and contract type not disclosed in reviewed profiles: Rio Tinto** — Copper-project consultant. [Annual Report 2026]() (printed p. 2, Managing Director biography) - **Prior to or alongside Galan; dates and contract type not disclosed in reviewed profiles: Codelco** — Copper-project consultant. [Annual Report 2026]() (printed p. 2, Managing Director biography) - **Prior to or alongside Galan; dates and contract type not disclosed in reviewed profiles: Foster Stockbroking** — Lithium analyst / research analyst. [Annual Report 2026]() (printed p. 2, Managing Director biography) - **Prior to or alongside Galan; dates and contract type not disclosed in reviewed profiles: Australian mining / private-equity sector** — Minerals analyst and private-equity experience. [Annual Report 2026]() (printed p. 2, Managing Director biography) - **Since mid-2018–cutoff: Galan Lithium** — Managing Director. [Annual Report 2026]() (printed p. 2, Managing Director biography) - **Before Galan; dates not stated: Foster Stockbroking** — Research analyst; lithium specialist. [Juan Pablo Vargas de la Vega speaker biography]() (Curriculum vitae) - **Period not stated: Private copper business, Chile** — Operator. [Annual Report 2026]() (printed p. 2, Managing Director biography) ## Education and qualifications ### Mineral economics education at Curtin [jp_vargas_education] As disclosed by 2018 · self reported · medium materiality A 2018 conference biography identifies Vargas as a mineral economics specialist educated at Curtin University in Perth. Galan’s 2026 annual report describes his 24 years of sector experience but does not name a degree. The exact award, institution wording and graduation date have not been independently verified. **Attribution:** Responsibility not applicable. Education detail is from an event biography; no degree title or independent credential record was established. **Relevance:** Relevant to the managing director’s commercial and mineral-industry responsibilities. [Juan Pablo Vargas de la Vega speaker biography]() (Curriculum vitae); [Annual Report 2026]() (printed p. 2, Managing Director biography) ## Contributions and company outcomes ### Galan Lithium reported project and corporate progress [jp_vargas_company_delivery] FY2026 · issuer reported · medium materiality Galan’s FY2026 report now records completed HMW Phase 1 construction, commissioning of the nanofiltration plant and first processed lithium chloride during the financial year. Management remained focused on ramp-up toward nameplate rates and first sales; no commercial sales or steady-state production are established in this finding. The milestone occurred during the MD’s tenure but is not personally attributed to him. **Attribution:** Role overlaps event; causation unproven. The role may overlap the period, but the issuer report does not assign sole or causal credit to this executive. **Relevance:** Provides evidence of the operating or project context the leadership team must continue to execute. [Annual Report 2026]() (printed p. 4, Principal Activities and FY2026 operating review) ### Galan completed HMW Phase 1 construction and produced first processed lithium chloride [jp_vargas_hmw_phase1_commissioning] FY2026 · issuer reported · high materiality Galan’s FY2026 annual report says Phase 1 construction was completed, the nanofiltration plant commissioned, and first processed lithium chloride produced during the year. The report describes a transition to producer status but says the focus remains ramp-up and first product sales; commercial sales and steady-state production were not established in the reviewed report. This is a company outcome during Vargas’s long CEO tenure, not solely attributable to him. **Attribution:** Role overlaps event; causation unproven. Vargas was Managing Director throughout the year; the annual report does not allocate sole responsibility for construction, commissioning or production. **Relevance:** Material delivery evidence for the current MD, with ramp-up and sales still outstanding as of the disclosure. [Annual Report 2026]() (printed p. 4, Principal Activities; annual report lines 347–354) ## Environmental record ### Catamarca court ordered cumulative-impact assessment and paused new basin permits [jp_vargas_hmw_environmental_injunction] March 2024–September 2025 · documented · high materiality On 13 March 2024 the Catamarca Supreme Court granted partial interim relief in a community environmental action, ordering a cumulative and integral lithium-mining impact study for the Río Los Patos–Salar del Hombre Muerto basin, open information and participation, and a pause on new permits/authorizations for works or activities in that area until completion. The proceeding addressed aggregate basin impacts and the Province; it did not adjudicate personal misconduct or find Galan responsible for environmental harm. Galan stated on 18 March 2024 that its already-granted HMW Phase 1 permits/EIAs were unaffected and that it did not plan to source water from Los Patos, so Phase 2 was not expected to be affected. A September 2025 court decision on environmental-record access again cited the injunction and identified Galan/Candelas-related permits in an administrative records dispute against the provincial ministry; that proceeding did not name Galan as respondent. **Attribution:** Role overlaps event; causation unproven. The order ran against provincial ministries across cumulative basin development; the record creates project-permitting and information-access context during Vargas’s tenure, not a personal fault finding. The company rebuttal addresses expected permit effect but is not a court finding. **Relevance:** Material permitting, water and Indigenous-consultation context for Galan’s Argentina project and the Managing Director’s execution oversight. [Sentencia Interlocutoria No. 8, Corte 054/2022, Guitián v. Poder Ejecutivo Nacional y otro]() (Sentencia Interlocutoria No. 8, operative clauses at pp. 28–29 and 45–46); [Galan’s HMW Project Phase 1 & 2 Unaffected by Provincial Court Ruling]() (pp. 1–2, effect on Phase 1 and Phase 2 water sourcing); [Sentencia Corte No. 041/2025 – environmental information access]() (paragraphs 50–82; paras. 59 and 64–76 identify the records/injunction) ## Suitability for the current role ### Relevance of current Managing Director role [jp_vargas_role_fit] Current at 2026-10-09 · analyst inference · medium materiality The issuer identifies Juan Pablo Vargas de la Vega as Managing Director. This role is relevant to the company's current mining stage and needs; this is an analyst role-fit inference based on the disclosed title and company profile, not evidence of past personal performance. The reviewed sources do not establish a complete prior-employer chronology, independently verified credentials or full concurrent-interest list. **Attribution:** Responsibility not applicable. This is a role-fit judgment, not an outcome or misconduct finding. **Relevance:** Assesses alignment of disclosed responsibilities with current company needs. [Annual Report 30 June 2025]() (Issuer management page, Juan Pablo Vargas de la Vega entry) ## Evidence gaps - A complete dated career chronology, verified education/professional membership and full concurrent-interest record were not established. - Person-specific enforcement, litigation, safety, environmental, legal and governance searches across material former employers remain uncompleted; no clearance conclusion is implied.