Board of Directors
ALLAN DAVIES
Co-Founder and Chairman, Australian Rhino Project
BE Mining (Hons), University of Queensland
Allan Davies, born in Brisbane QLD in 1951, grew up in NW QLD at Mt Isa. He boarded at the Brisbane Grammar School and went onto study Mining Engineering at the University Of Queensland, graduating in November 1973.
Allan has 40 years of experience in the Australian and international coal industry and is a registered mine manager in South Africa and Australia.
Allan commenced work with MIM Ltd at Mt Isa and then Union Corporation in South Africa. Subsequently, he joined BP Coal where he was, in succession, mine manager at the Howick Open Cut and Director Mining, BP Coal Inc (based in Cleveland), Ohio. After returning to Australia in 1990 he became General Manager of the Agipcoal United underground mine in the Hunter Valley and after that General Manager of the Rio Tinto Hunter Valley No 1 and Howick mines.
Allan was a founding executive director of Excel Coal through to the takeover of Excel Coal by Peabody in 2006. Allan was also a non-executive director of Pacific National Pty Ltd, QR National Limited (now Aurizon), QMastor Limited and an executive director of Whitehaven Coal Limited until November 2012.
Allan is currently a non-executive director of Qube Holdings Limited, King Island Scheelite Limited and XLX Pty Ltd.
MARK STANBRIDGE
Partner at Ashurst Sydney (1994 - 2015)
Mark Stanbridge is a partner at Ashurst in Sydney where he is a local and cross-borders mergers and acquisitions lawyer with over 20 years' experience.
Mark has acted for domestic and international (public, private and government) clients including Advent Capital, Anchorage Capital, Archer Capital, Bain Capital, Boart Longyear, Cambridge Place Investment Management, Challenger, Coca-Cola Amatil, CVC, de Longhi, Deutsche Bank, Direct Cash, Downer EDI, Franklins, Intel Capital, KKR, Norske Skog Paper, Pacific Beverages (joint venture of SAB Miller & Coca-Cola Amatil), Pick 'n Pay (South Africa), Providence Private Equity, Ramsay Health Care, SAB Miller, Transurban and Värde across a range of sectors including health and aged care, education, transport, retail, food & beverages and manufacturing. Mark has acted for clients in relation to transactions in Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Canada, China, Fiji, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Russia, Singapore, South Africa, Taiwan, UK, USA, Venezuela.
Mark Stanbridge "always has things under control’ Client quote, Legal 500, 2016.
"Highly experienced, he is especially valued by clients for his swift appreciation of commercial imperatives." – Chambers Asia-Pacific, 2015.
Mark Stanbridge is the national head of the firm’s corporate practice and is a "prompt, service-oriented and commercial deal doer" – Chambers Global, 2009.
Clients praise Mark for being technically accomplished, incredibly commercial and pragmatic - "he is extremely incisive and insightful and can cut through the nonsense and find solutions" - Chambers Global, 2007.
Mark is named as a leading individual in a number of media sources, including the Chambers Global, 2009, Best Lawyers Australia, 2009, PLC Cross-border Handbooks, 2008/09 and PLC Which Lawyer? Yearbook, 2008.
- University of Natal (Bachelor of Arts)
- University of Natal (Bachelor of Laws)
- Harvard Business School (Advanced Management Program)
Member of The Australian Chamber Orchestra's Development Committee
DAVID HUMPHREYS
Company Secretary of the Australian Rhino Project
Financial markets and companies regulator (2001-2013)
BA (Hons) LLB (Syd); Master of Laws (with distinction) (HK) (1998)
Diplomat, with Mandarin, specialising in China’s political economy (1995-2000)
David Humphreys most latterly has been with the Australian corporate regulator, ASIC, responsible for supervision of market licensees and for screening proposed complex financial products (e.g. structured products and synthetic ETFs incorporating swap agreements) to determine their suitability for quotation on retail markets.
David Humphreys completed a Master of Laws at the University of Hong Kong, graduating with distinction in Chinese trade law, UK/Australian restitutionary remedies and the gamut of commercial security. David’s initial law degree was obtained at the University of Sydney.
Prior to his regulatory role, David Humphreys was for 19 years a political officer with the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs & Trade. David devoted more than four years to intensive Thai and Mandarin language training. His last posting as a diplomat was as Consul in Hong Kong in the years before and after the 1997 handover, focusing on China’s political economy.
PAUL WHITE
Corporate Advisor, Australian Rhino Project
Born in Melbourne, Paul has more than 35 years experience as a journalist and corporate affairs adviser in Australia and overseas.
From 1977 he spent fifteen years specialising in reporting political, legal and financial affairs for the Seven and Nine networks, ABC TV News and The 7.30 Report in Australia, Europe, Asia and the Pacific.
He was media director for the NSW Independent Commission Against Corruption before becoming Head of Public Affairs for the Westpac Banking Corporation responsible for all media, government and consumer relations.
He formed White Group Communications in 1994 and currently advises several of Australia's top 100 corporations on public, government and employee relations.
Paul provides political and media advice for corporations dealing with international mergers and takeovers and specialises in major workplace reform, industrial strategies and litigation management. He is also a director of a number of private investment companies.
Paul's love of Africa has taken him to Botswana, Uganda, Rwanda, Tanzania, Zambia and South Africa frequently over the last decade.
ELAINE BENSTED
Chief Executive, Zoos South Australia
Elaine Bensted is Chief Executive, Zoos South Australia commencing in September 2012. Prior to being appointed as Chief Executive, Zoos South Australia Elaine held the position of Chief Executive TAFE SA.
Prior to that role, Elaine held Senior roles in both State and Local Government and has had previous roles in the private finance sector.
Elaine is also on the Board of the Zoo and Aquarium Association, Nature Play SA, and Children’s University and University of SA’s Business School Advisory Board.
Elaine’s qualifications include an MBA and a Masters in Public Policy and Management.
