Canadian miner Barrick Gold has named Ammar Al-Joundi as executive vice president and chief financial officer.
Mr Al-Joundi has more than 20 years of experience in corporate finance and banking within the mining industry, with extensive expertise in capital markets, business strategy, financial controls and mine operations. Mr Al-Joundi spent 11 years at Barrick before leaving in 2010 to take on the roles of senior vice president, finance and chief financial officer for Agnico-Eagle Mines.
In his new role with Barrick Mr Al-Joundi succeeds Jamie Sokalsky, who was recently promoted as the company’s president and chief executive.
Iron ore explorer Centrex Metals has announced a change to its senior management team: Former general manager, commercial Phillip Staveley has assumed the new role of general manager, responsible to the chairman and the board. Mr Staveley has extensive experience in finance, investor relations and management in the mining, agriculture, energy and contracting industries. His previous senior roles have included nine years with Normandy Mining in Australia, Brazil, Chile and Canada.
The company stated that Mr Staveley’s appointment would allow former managing director Jim White to step down from full-time duties, due to health issues. Mr White will continue as a part-time executive director.
Experienced mining executive Stephen Everett has been appointed by MetroCoal to the position of independent non-executive chairman. Mr Everett has more than 40 years of board and management experience in the resources and construction industries, holding senior positions with both publicly-listed and private companies and government Development Boards.
Mr Everett is chairman of Global Resources Corporation and sIronRidge Resources, and has served as chairman of Australian Solomons Gold, JMS Engineering/JJ McDonald & Sons and BeMaX Resources, and as a director of Queensland Coal Mine Management.
MetroCoal acting chairman Lindsay Ward said Mr Everett’s resource project development and coal industry experience would be a major asset for the company.
“On behalf of the MetroCoal board I would like to again thank outgoing chairman David Barwick, who made an outstanding contribution,” Mr Ward said.
BC Iron recently announced the appointment of Jamie Gibson to its board as non-executive director. Mr Gibson is chief executive officer of BC Iron’s second-largest shareholder Regent Pacific Group, a diversified mining group focussed primarily on the Asia Pacific region. He has spent the majority of his professional career with Regent specialising in corporate finance, direct equity investments and structuring emerging market investment products.
“Regent is a significant long-term shareholder in BC Iron and, as [chief executive officer], I would like to show our commitment by having a seat on the board and contributing towards BC Iron’s success at a strategic level,” Mr Gibson said.
“We continue to believe that BC Iron’s current share price represents good value based on a number of valuation measures and is the fundamental reason for us increasing our holding in BC Iron to almost 23 per cent recently.”
Following the resignation of chief financial officer Guy Elliott, effective at the end of 2013, Rio Tinto has announced a number of changes to its senior management team. Rio Tinto Energy chief executive Doug Ritchie has been appointed to the new role of group executive strategy, with responsibility for group strategy and business development. He will take up the London-based role on January 1, 2013.
Meanwhile, Diamonds and Minerals chief executive Harry Kenyon-Slaney will assume the Brisbane-based role of energy chief executive from September 1; and Rio Tinto Iron Ore international operations president Alan Davies will be the new Diamonds and Minerals chief executive from September 1, based in London, and will join Rio Tinto’s executive committee.
Mr Elliott will remain on the boards of Rio Tinto PLC and Rio Tinto Limited as a senior executive director, and will continue his role as chief financial officer until a successor is appointed.
In early July, the board of Exco Resources announced that it had accepted the resignation of non-executive director Peter Reeve, effective immediately. Mr Reeve joined the board in May 2008 and served as the nominated representative of the company’s largest shareholder, Ivanhoe Australia, through important phases of the company’s history.
At the same time, the Exco board also announced the appointment of Michael Spreadborough as a non-executive director. Mr Spreadborough is chief operating officer of Ivanhoe Australia, and has extensive experience in operational and management roles in large, multi-national companies. He was previously a general manager within Rio Tinto’s Pilbara iron ore operations and, prior to joining Rio Tinto, he was vice president, mining at BHP Billiton’s Olympic Dam operations.
Bauxite Resources has announced the appointment of Robert Middlemas as company secretary. Mr Middlemas is a chartered accountant with more than 20 years of experience in senior financial management and in executive roles with a number of listed public companies operating predominantly in the resources sector. He is the principal of a corporate advisory company that provides financial, board and secretarial services specialising in capital raisings, initial public offerings, corporate secretarial, financial and management reporting, treasury and corporate governance. Mr Middlemas’s
appointment followed Patrick Soh’s resignation from Bauxite Resources.
The board of IMX Resources announced in late June that it had received the resignation of director Cao Xiang Kui. Mr Cao was appointed to the board in March 2008 as a representative of Jilin Tongua Iron & Steel (Mining) Group.
IMX chairman John Nitschke thanked Mr Cao for his contributions to the company during his years of service.
On July 16, IMX announced the appointment of Kellie Benda as a non-executive director, effective August 1. Ms Benda is a lawyer and investment banker with extensive corporate advisory and management experience specialising in equity capital markets and mergers and acquisitions, particularly in the mining and resources sectors. She holds a Bachelor of Laws, a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Applied Finance, is a graduate of the Harvard Business School AMP and a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and the Australian Institute of Management.
Gold and base metals exploration company Hannans Reward has appointed Amanda Scott to the role of exploration manager. Ms Scott has previously been employed by Hannans: she worked for the company from 2008 to 2010, and was integral in the development of its Scandinavian iron, copper and gold interests. She was also credited with the discovery of Hannans’ high-grade iron asset in the Pilbara region of WA, which the company sold to Warwick Resources in 2009. Ms Scott has previously held the role of exploration manager for Scandinavian Resources, and has worked as an exploration
geologist for Hannans, Navigator Resources and De Grey Mining. She is a member of the Australian Institute of Mining & Metallurgy.
Following a strategic review of its size, structure and key competencies, changes have been made to the board of Bullabulling Gold.
“At the time of the company’s admission to the ASX and AIM [London Stock Exchange] it was agreed that an additional independent director would be appointed,” the company stated.
“The board has been seeking two candidates, one candidate with mining industry experience and one candidate with strong financial skills who can chair the audit committee, further enhance corporate governance standards and assist the company when it becomes time to procure funding to develop the Bullabulling gold project.
“The board is pleased to advise the appointment of Ronald Beevor as a non-executive director.”
Mr Beevor is an investment banker and was head of investment banking at NM Rothschild & Sons (Australia).
He has had extensive involvement with the natural resources industry, both in Australia and internationally, and was formerly a director of Oxiana. He is a senior advisor to Gryphon Partners Advisory, a subsidiary of Standard Chartered, and serves on the boards of a number of listed resource company boards.
Following the announcement of Mr Beevor’s appointment, Bullabilling detailed further changes to its board. “The board has further decided that a board of seven directors is excessive for a company of Bullabulling Gold’s size and stage of development,” the company stated.
“Accordingly, Chris Baker, Jeff Malaihollo, John Lawton and David McArthur have all stepped down from the board in order to facilitate a restructuring as the company enters its next phase of development.”
“The board of the company now comprises Peter Mansell as non-executive chairman, Brett Lambert as managing director and Mr Beevor.
David McArthur will continue as company secretary and chief financial officer for the group.”
