MMTA 2026 Conference Programme and Speakers

Conference speakers

Carolina Frey, R&D Metallurgist, ATI Specialty Materials, USA

Refractory alloy solutions for a changing world

“Carolina Frey earned a PhD in Materials Science and Engineering from the University of California- Santa Barbara, where she developed new alloying strategies for niobium-based alloys. She currently works as an R&D metallurgist at ATI SA&C, a producer of specialty alloys for the nuclear, medical, and aerospace and defence industries.”

 

Thomas Feldmann, Corporate Development Director, 5N Plus, Canada

Criticality + Instability = Opportunity (?)

Dr. Thomas Feldmann is Director of Corporate Development at 5N+, where he helps shape the
company’s strategy for advanced materials and other strategic initiatives. Over the years, he has worked extensively in research and development, focusing on hydrometallurgical processes for extracting
and recycling minor elements such as tellurium and germanium. His work bridges innovation in both primary recovery
and circular material use.

Before joining 5N+, Dr. Feldmann was a research analyst at McKinsey & Company, where he advised client teams in the steel and aluminium sectors as part of the Basic Materials Institute. He holds a Ph.D.in Materials Engineering from McGill
University, Canada and a Master’s degree in Industrial Engineering from TU Bergakademie Freiberg, Germany.

 

Jan Giese, Senior Manager Minor Metals & Rare Earth Elements Sales, Tradium GmbH, Germany;

The impact of geopolitics on minor metals

Jan Giese has been working in industrial sales of technology metals and rare earths at TRADIUM
in Frankfurt/Main (Germany) since 2022. Before that, the business administration graduate headed global purchasing at Heraeus Quarzglas GmbH, a business unit of the global family-owned company Heraeus, for 2.5 years.

During his time with Heraeus, Jan Giese was in charge of buying rare earths as raw materials; he has learned about the challenges the industry faces through first-hand experience. Since working for TRADIUM, he has been deepening his knowledge of rare earths markets and their players. Jan Giese is also a sought-after raw materials expert for Germany‘s leading business magazine, the Handelsblatt.

 

Theo D. Ruas, Global Sales Manager, Metals & Compounds, Indium Corporation, USA;

Impact of Foreign Policies on CRM supply chains

Theo Ruas is the Global Sales Manager for Metals and Compounds at Indium Corporation., In this role, he leads all aspects of global sales for Metals and Compounds, including market analysis, business development and information support for technology innovation. Theo has a degree in mechanical engineering from the Federal University of Santa Catarina, in Brazil.

 

Mandy Yin, Sales Deputy General Manager,  Zhuzhou Keneng New Material Co., Ltd, PR China;

High purity Indium and Gallium, critical metal materials, market situation

Mandy Yin has been engaged in the sales of Minor & Rare metals industry for 17 years, and is

now the sales deputy general manager of Zhuzhou Keneng New Material Co., Ltd. Zhuzhou Keneng New Material Co., Ltd. known as a national new hi tech enterprise locating at Jinshan Sci tech industrial park Zhuzhou, Hunan Province, China, has been engaging in the production of Minor & Rare metals, especially indium, gallium, bismuth, tellurium, tin and all their related products since Jan 2001.

 

Grace Asenov, Market Editor, Fastmarkets, USA;

Shifting dynamics in antimony: how supply, demand and geopolitics are redefining the market landscape

Grace Asenov is Base & Energy Metals Editor for the Americas at Fastmarkets, with more than a decade of experience in metals price reporting. She leads coverage of battery raw materials, base metals and minor metals across the Americas, overseeing price assessments conducted in line with IOSCO principles for price reporting agencies. Her work focuses on market structure, price formation and the evolving supply chains underpinning the energy transition and secure critical minerals supply.

Dr Jinghui Wu, CEO, Ningbo Chuangrun New Materials Co., Ltd. (CRNMC), PR China;

Developments in high purity metal: titanium, cobalt, niobium, and tantalum

Dr. Jinghui Wu, co-founder of Ningbo Chuangrun New Materials Co., Ltd. (CRNMC), Ph.D. in materials science and engineering from the University of Pittsburgh, has more than 20 years of experience in the field of high-purity metal preparation. 

Dr. Wu and his team of CRNMC focus on the purification and application promotion of ultra-high-purity metals, including Ti, Cu, Ni, Nb, Co, Mo, Ta and others, in which ultra-high-purity Ti, Cu, and Ni have been widely used in the sputtering target industry. With the goal of both high purity and high cleanliness, under the leadership of Dr. Wu, the CRNMC has demonstrated excellent innovation capabilities in the field of equipment development and process improvement, and products such as Nb, Ta, Mo, Ti and intermediate alloys have been widely accepted in the field of superalloy preparation, significantly improving the quality and performance of these superalloys under multi extreme application conditions.

Will Parry-Jones, Independent Consultant, Wolfram Advisory,  UK;

Wolfram Wars: tungsten and the scarcity trap

“William Parry-Jones is a respected authority on the Global Tungsten Market, as well as Critical Minerals Strategy & Marketing. In 2025, he founded Wolfram Advisory Ltd., a boutique strategy consultancy providing sector-specific, data-driven insights into the tungsten industry; a traditionally opaque market that has gained prominence due to its criticality and the recent geopolitical tensions between the US and China.

Previously, William served as Global Director of Sales & Tungsten Strategic Sourcing and was a member of the Executive Committee at Masan High-Tech Materials, the largest tungsten mining company outside of China. He joined the company in 2019 and lived in Hanoi, Vietnam, where he had global accountability for sales and marketing, direct raw material procurement, and developing the company’s outlook on commodity markets and macroeconomic trends.

Prior to joining MHT William spent ~10 years working in physical commodities trading based out of London, with a focus on tungsten and other critical minerals and minor metals. He holds an MSc in Materials Science and Engineering from Imperial College London and is a member of the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining.”

Jessica Fung, Head of Consulting, Project Blue, USA;

Critical materials in the aerospace & defence industry

Jessica is Head of Consulting at Project Blue, a market intelligence and consulting firm focused on critical materials and their supply chains.  She is a seasoned senior finance professional with over 18 years of experience specialising in commodities market research and investment strategy.  Throughout her career, she has engaged and collaborated with management teams and key decision-makers around the world to shape corporate and financial strategies, and has served as non-executive director.

 

Zach Schumacher, Americas Metals Editor, Argus Metals, USA;

“Critical materials in automotive”

“Zach Schumacher is the Americas Metals Editor for Argus and manages a team of reporters focused on price reporting, news and analysis across the region.

Over the course of more than a decade, he has covered the US rare earths, minor metals, ferro-alloys, domestic ferrous scrap and pig iron markets.  

Zach holds a Master’s degree in International Politics and Business from New York University and a Bachelor’s degree in International Relations and Chinese from the University of Pittsburgh.”

 

MMTA International Minor Metals Conference 2025 programme

Monday April 20 2026

07.30hrs – 15:30hrs Golf Tournament at the Seymour Golf & Country Club, kindly sponsored by ICD Group. 

19:00hrs – 21:00hrs  Margarita Cocktail Party kindly sponsored by IMS Metals & Alloys

 

Tuesday April 21 2026

17:00 hrs onwards – registration

18:00hrs – 20:00hrs Welcome Reception kindly sponsored by CCMA LLC

 

Wednesday April 22 2026

08:00hrs Registration and Barista Coffee Break sponsored by Exotech until midday

09:00hrs MMTA’s AGM

MMTA AGM is open to MMTA members only. Members are encouraged to attend.

09.30hrs Barista Coffee Break sponsored by Exotech

 

Session 1: Trade, Tariffs & Minor Metals in a Changing World Order

09:45 hrs Introduction by Rachel Carnac, Co-Founder & Joint Managing Director, Metal Events Ltd, UK;

09:50 hrs Welcome remarks by Chair, MMTA, UK;

10:00 hrs – “Refractory alloy solutions for a changing world”, by Carolina Frey, R&D Metallurgist, ATI Specialist Materials, USA;

10:30 “Criticality + Instability = Opportunity (?)” by Thomas Feldmann, Corporate Development Director, 5N Plus, Canada

11:00hrs – “The Impact of Geopolitics on Minor Metals – From Globalization to Strategic Competition”, by Jan Giese, Senior Manager Minor Metals & Rare Earth Elements Sales, Tradium GmbH, Germany;

11:30hrs Barista Coffee Break sponsored by Exotech

 

Session 2: Minor Metals at a Crossroads

12:00hrs – “Impact of Foreign Policies on CRM supply chains”, by Theo D. Ruas, Global Sales Manager, Metals & Compounds, Indium Corporation, USA;

12:30hrs – “High purity Indium and Gallium, critical metal materials, market situation”, by Mandy Yin, Sales Deputy General Manager, Zhuzhou Keneng New Material Co,Ltd.PR China;

13:00 hrs  – “Shifting dynamics in antimony: how supply, demand and geopolitics are redefining the market landscape,” by Grace Asenov, Market Editor, Fastmarkets, USA;13:30hrs –

14:30hrs Luncheon sponsored by Titan International

 

Session 3: Panel discussion: “How are minor metals defining a new world order? Trade, Technology and Defence.” 

14:30-15:30 hrs – Panellists include:

• David S. Abraham, Affiliate Professor, Boise State
  University, USA;
• Ian Margerison,  Executive Marketing Manager, Tantalum- Niobium International Study Center (T.I.C.), Belgium;
• Marcin Zydowicz, Trade Commissioner, Energy & Mining,
  High Commission of Canada; 

 

17:30hrs -18:30hrs Pre-Dinner drinks sponsored by Advanced Alloy Services Ltd

18:30hrs – 21:00hrs MMTA’s Gala Dinner for all delegates

Sponsored by ATI,  ICD Group and DMC Alloy Processors 
(Dress Code: Lounge Suit)  

 

Thursday April 23 2026

09:00hrs  Registration desk reopens – Barista Coffee sponsored by Exotech until midday

 

Session 4 – Supply security and developing stable supply chains

9.30hrs   “Developments in high purity metal: titanium, cobalt, niobium, and tantalum”, by Dr Jinghui Wu, CEO, Ningbo Chuangrun New Materials Co., Ltd. (CRNMC), PR China;

10.00hrs “Wolfram Wars: tungsten and the scarcity trap”, by Will Parry-Jones, Independent Consultant, Wolfram Advisory,  UK;

10:30-11:15 Barista Coffee Break sponsored by Exotech

 

Session 5 – Key Market Developments in Defence, Aerospace and Automotive

11:15hrs –”Critical materials in the aerospace & defence industry”, by Jessica Fung, Head of Consulting, Project Blue, USA;

11:45 hrs – “Critical materials in automotive”, by Zach Schumacher, Americas Metals Editor, Argus Metals, USA;

12:15 hrs Closing remarks

12:30-14:00  Luncheon sponsored by Titan International