Mr John Seton

John is an Auckland-based lawyer with extensive experience in commercial law and the mineral resources sector. He has held notable positions, including chairman of the Vietnam/New Zealand Business Council and Summit Resources Limited, which was acquired in a A$1.5 billion takeover in 2007. John has also served as a director for several TSX, ASX, and NZX listed companies. His contributions to the industry include the development of two gold mines in Vietnam and advancing the 3 million-ounce Bau gold project in East Malaysia to the development stage.

John holds an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington and an LLM (Hons) from the University of Auckland. He is admitted to the Bar in New Zealand, California, and England and is a Chartered Fellow of the New Zealand Institute of Directors.

Currently, John is focused on advancing Trans-Tasman Resources Ltd’s significant vanadium-rich titanomagnetite (VTM) resource discovery, located 22km offshore in the South Taranaki Bight. This project aims to produce critical minerals—iron, vanadium, and titanium—essential for the transition to a low-carbon, green-tech future. The Taranaki VTM Project promises to deliver high-value jobs, skills training, long-term career opportunities, and much-needed infrastructure investment in the Taranaki/Whanganui region, all while contributing foreign currency earnings, taxes, and royalties to the Crown with minimal environmental impact.

In his free time, John enjoys surf lifesaving and rowing.