September 26, 2007 Rockwell Revamps Its Board Of Directors And Appoints Audit, Remuneration, Governance And Technical Committees
September 26, 2007, Vancouver, BC - Rockwell Diamonds Inc. ("Rockwell" or the "Company") (TSXV: RDI; OTCBB: RDIAF) announces the following changes and additions to its Board of Directors to increase the number of independent members and add to the operational experience of the Board. The following changes are effective as of September 26, 2007.
The changes which have been implemented by Rockwell include the following resignations and new appointments of Officers and to its Board of Directors:
Current Chairman Mr. Ronald Thiessen will be standing down from his position as Chairman and as a Director of the Company. Mr. David J Copeland will replace Mr. Thiessen as Chairman. Mr. Copeland will resign his current position as Chief Executive Officer, but will remain a director of the Company.
Dr. John Bristow who previously held the position of President and Chief Operating Officer will assume the role of President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company.
Mr. Jeffrey Mason has resigned from the Board and also stepped down as Chief Financial Officer ("CFO"). He will be replaced by Mr. Dominique de la Roche, currently CFO of Rockwell's South African subsidiary Rockwell Resources RSA (Pty) Limited, as CFO and as a Director of Rockwell Diamonds Inc.
Mr. Jeffrey Brenner will retire from the Board of Directors and also step down from his position as Marketing and Sales Director and assume the role of Manager -- Diamond Marketing and Sales.
Dr. Patrick Bartlett, a geologist and mining engineer with extensive experience in exploration, evaluation and mining of alluvial diamond and kimberlite deposits, will join the Board as an independent Director.
Mr. Scott Cousens, Dr. Mark Bristow, Mr. Rene G Carrier (Independent), and Mr. Douglas Silver (Independent) will all continue with their roles as Directors.
Jeffrey Brenner will remain a key member of the Management Committee and will continue to be responsible for Rockwell's diamond marketing and sales, as well as developing and implementing the Company's beneficiation strategy. Mr. Brenner will be relocating to Toronto to proactively drive sales of the Company's diamonds in the key North American and European markets, and will also help co-ordinate Investor Relations activities in the North American domain.
Dominique de la Roche is a Chartered Accountant with an Honours Degree in Accounting Sciences from the University of South Africa (UNISA), and a Higher Diploma in Tax from UNISA. He completed his articles at Price Waterhouse, and subsequently worked for Vaal Reefs Exploration & Mining Company (Anglo American), Standard Corporate and Merchant Bank in Johannesburg, and BCL (Ltd) in Botswana and was Financial Director at Kairos Industrial Holdings/Witbank Brickworks.
Mr. de la Roche has extensive operational experience in the senior and junior mining sectors, finance and corporate environments, as well as expertise in the South African mining taxation regime. He has gained past working experience in mining activities and legislative environments within different southern African countries.
Patrick Bartlett holds a BSc Honours degree from Rhodes University, and MSc in Minerals Exploration from London University, a BA in Economics and Communications from the University of South Africa, and a PhD in Mining Engineering from the University of Pretoria. He worked for De Beers for some 38 years and during that time gained experience in the evaluation and development of West Coast alluvial diamond deposits, undertook feasibility work of the Jwaneng mine in Botswana and other diamond mines, was the mine geologist for the Kimberley Central Mines, and later was the Chief Geologist of the Cullinan diamond mine.
Mr. Bartlett has extensive experience in grade control, size frequency analysis and mineral resource management, and processing and recovery methods as applied to diamond deposits. He is an internationally recognized expert on block cave mining methods and since his retirement from De Beers in 2003, he has consulted to many of the world leading diamond and base metal mining companies.
President and CEO John Bristow said "The Board changes create a stronger balance of independence and operational experience on the Board, which will provide advantages to the Company in its drive to expand its southern African operations and growth footprint. I would like to thank the retiring members of the Board for their important contributions during the initial start-up phase and growth of the Company."
For further details on Rockwell Diamonds Inc., please visit the Company's website at www.rockwelldiamonds.com or contact Investor Services at (604) 684-6365 or within North America at 1-800-667-2114.
John Bristow President and CEO
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