The chief executive of mining giant Rio Tinto will hand the reins over to the leader of the company’s copper and coal division later this year.
The chief executive of mining giant Rio Tinto will hand the reins over to the leader of the company’s copper and coal division later this year.
Sam Walsh announced today he will retire from the business on July 1 after seven years on the company’s board.
He will be succeeded by Jean-Sebastien Jacques.
“I have been seriously fortunate to lead one of the world’s best companies,” Mr Walsh said.
“After 25 great and enjoyable years with Rio Tinto, now is the right time to pass the reins on to Jean Sebastien.
“I am very proud to have played my part, together with all of our employees around the world, in returning Rio Tinto to a position of industry leadership and strength. I have always wanted to make a difference and I believe we have achieved that.”
Prior to his three-year tenure as chief executive, Mr Walsh was based in Perth as head of Rio's iron ore business.
Mr Jacques will immediately take on the role of deputy chief executive until Mr Walsh’s retirement in July.
In his deputy role Mr Jacques will be paid a base salary of £800,000 ($A1.5 million), but that will be notched up to £1.08 million ($A2.02 million) from July 1.
Chris Salisbury has been appointed acting chief executive of Rio’s copper and coal division, while the rest of the executive teams have remained unchanged.
Prior to joining Rio three years ago, Mr Jacques was group strategy director at Tata Steel Group from 2007 to 2011.
He previously spent 15 years in Europe, Asia, India and the US in a range of operational and functional positions at companies including at Turquoise Hill Resources, Palabora Mining Company and Bougainville Copper.
Rio chairman Jan du Plessis said Mr Jacques was a very experienced executive with a demonstrated track record and brought a unique blend of strategic and operational expertise.
“Today’s announcement is the culmination of a comprehensive and deliberate executive succession process,” Mr du Plessis said.
“The board has decided that Mr Jacques is the right person to lead Rio Tinto in an increasingly complex world filled with both challenges and opportunities for our industry.”
Rio shares closed unchanged at $42.69 each.
