Gold producer Beadell Resources has announced a board restructure and a new mining contract at its operations in Brazil, as the company pursues a primary listing in Canada.
Gold producer Beadell Resources has announced a board restructure and a new mining contract at its operations in Brazil, as the company pursues a primary listing in Canada.
Under the changes, Perth-based managing director Simon Jackson, chief operating officer Peter Holmes and non-executive chairman Craig Readhead will step down from their roles.
Canada-based non-executive director Nicole Adshead-Bell has been appointed to replace Mr Jackson, while fellow non-executive director Brant Hinze, who lives in the US, has assumed the role of chairman.
The company has resolved to remove the position of COO.
Mr Readhead will remain as a non-executive director of the company.
“I welcome Nicole stepping up into the role of CEO and managing director of Beadell and I am fully committed to supporting the company as we execute on the operational turnaround of Tucano,” Mr Hinze said.
“I would like to thank Craig Readhead for his contribution as chairman of Beadell and look forward to continuing to work with him as a director.”
The company also said it had secured a life of mine (LOM) contract with U&M at its Tucano mine in Brazil, which it expects will result in a $US100 million ($135 million) reduction in costs at the project.
The news comes after Beadell terminated its previous mining contract at Tucano with MACA last month, leaving the miner to repay a $61 million loan.
Under the new agreement, U&M will be paid on a volume basis, which is expected to result in an additional $US1 million annual cost savings when compared to the contract with Maca.
“We are pleased to have reached an agreement with U&M that we believe will materially improve the financial performance of the Tucano Gold Mine,” Ms Adshead-Bell said.
“U&M’s Brazilian open pit mining expertise, combined with its sizeable fleet, means that U&M is uniquely positioned to help us move Tucano towards generating free cash flow and resolving the key issue of material movement in line with our LOM plan.”
Beadell has outlined a number of other cost reduction strategies, including a reduction in the chief executive’s cash compensation by 52 per cent, with Ms Adshead-Bell set to receive an annual salary of $350,000.
The company will also reduce the head count at its Rio de Janeiro office from 14 down to four and moving one position to Tucano.
Beadell said a committee was established by Tucano mine management to identify additional cost reduction opportunities.
Shares in Beadell were up 5.88 per cent at 5.4 cents each at 330pm AEDT.
