About Us — Synterra Assets

"Africa does not suffer from an absence of assets. It suffers from a mismatch between opportunity and appropriately structured capital."

Our Philosophy

Our philosophy is based upon a simple observation. Africa does not suffer from an absence of assets or opportunity. It frequently suffers from a mismatch between opportunity and appropriately structured capital.

Synterra exists to bridge that gap. We combine project finance, investment structuring, technical expertise, commodity-market knowledge and local execution capability to develop transactions capable of meeting the requirements of investors, lenders, governments and commercial counterparties.

Our Business

The Complete Project Development Cycle

Synterra's activities encompass the complete project-development cycle: opportunity origination, preliminary evaluation, due diligence, feasibility assessment, financial modelling, transaction structuring, capital raising, project development, commodity offtake and asset management.

We are particularly interested in projects where intelligent financial structuring can unlock value that conventional financing approaches may overlook.

Our principal focus is Africa, with particular experience across Southern African markets. Operating in emerging markets requires more than financial analysis. Projects must be understood within their geological, operational, regulatory, political, environmental and social context.

Synterra combines international investment standards with experienced professionals capable of operating effectively within these environments.

Our Leadership

The Team Behind Synterra

Dennis Prins

Chairman

An experienced natural resources executive specialising in originating, structuring and developing investments across Africa's resource sector. His experience encompasses gold, critical minerals and energy, combining commodity-market knowledge with emerging-market investment expertise.

$Femi (Tex) Ogunkolati$ TO

Femi (Tex) Ogunkolati

Chief Executive Officer

Brings more than two decades of international experience in financial innovation, risk engineering and structured resource finance across Africa, Europe and the United States. A trained economist and dealmaker, his focus is the transformation of complex natural-resource opportunities into investable financial structures.

Given Makozho

Managing Director, Zimbabwe

A mining administrator and investment manager responsible for Synterra's Zimbabwean activities. His experience encompasses mining investment, due diligence, agreement structuring, beneficiation and engagement with investors, government, regulators, communities and commercial counterparties.

Adriaan P. van Wyngaard

Director, Mining Operations

Brings almost four decades of mining experience encompassing underground and surface mining, processing plants, engineering, environmental management, occupational health and safety, budgeting and operational management.

Willem Kramer

Director, Mining Strategy & Project Development

An internationally experienced mining engineer and strategic adviser with more than five decades of experience in mining, dredging and mineral processing. His career encompasses technical evaluation, project development and strategic advisory for mining companies, financiers, governments and development institutions.

Manoah Upson

Global Head of Acquisitions

Leads the sourcing and evaluation of acquisition opportunities. His role combines market intelligence, commercial analysis, asset screening and transaction evaluation to identify projects possessing genuine strategic and economic merit.

Philippus J. De Witt

Senior Mining Executive & Strategist

Brings more than four decades of executive experience across mining operations, project development, mineral trading and investment structuring. His experience spans gold, coal, chrome, iron ore, diamonds, zinc, uranium and other commodities across multiple African and international jurisdictions.

African Opportunity.
International Financial Discipline.

The Complete Project Development Cycle