Peter Tsegas, a long-serving director of Magnis Energy Technologies, has stepped down from the company amid deepening financial troubles and renewed risks to its graphite mine project in Tanzania.
Tsegas, who served on the board for a decade, left as the ASX-listed firm pushes forward with plans to develop its Nachu graphite mine in Tanzania’s remote Ruvuma basin, despite a default notice from the Tanzanian government and outstanding debts.
Company filings show Magnis owed Tsegas more than $65,000 but paid him $103,000 in “personal exertion fees.”
He previously received $15,000 USD per month for government liaison in Tanzania, alongside reimbursements for personal expenses including rent, utilities, and even his partner’s gym membership.
The Greek Australian director, formerly linked to a failed winery venture in South Australia, was also reported to have met alleged drug lord Hakan Arif during a company visit to Turkey, according to The Australian.
Magnis, once valued at over $770 million, has collapsed in value. Its US battery plant was recently seized by lenders, and the company now holds just $23,000 in cash.
Despite this, it has signed new deals with Chinese firms to begin engineering work on Nachu, while facing more than $15 million in loan and interest repayments.
Source: The Advertiser.
