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Investing.com -- Rio Tinto (NYSE:RIO) announced on Thursday that CEO Jakob Stausholm will step down later this year, with a formal process to find his successor already in progress.
Stausholm, who took over leadership in early 2021, will remain in his role until a replacement is named. “A rigorous selection process is already underway, led by the Nominations Committee,” the company stated in its announcement to the London Stock Exchange (LON:LSEG).
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His appointment followed a period of turmoil for the world’s top iron ore producer, after the destruction of the ancient Juukan Gorge caves led to widespread backlash. Stausholm replaced Jean-Sébastien Jacques, who departed amid criticism of the company’s response to the incident.
Since joining Rio Tinto in 2018 and becoming CEO three years later, the Danish executive has focused on steering the miner toward assets tied to the energy transition. Prior to Rio, Stausholm held senior roles at A.P. Moller - Maersk and served on IBM’s advisory board.
Rio Tinto chair Dominic Barton said in the announcement: “Under Jakob’s leadership, Rio Tinto has restored trust with key stakeholders, aligned our portfolio with the commodities where demand growth is strongest, built a diverse and talented management team, and set a compelling growth trajectory.”
“This is a natural moment to appoint Jakob’s successor, as we look ahead to our next phase in which we will double down to deliver greater operational performance to realise the full potential of our assets," he added.
Commenting on his exit, Stausholm said: “It has been an absolute privilege to lead Rio Tinto, one of the great mining and materials companies in the world."
“We have built on Rio Tinto’s historic strengths to deliver profitable, stable growth and significant shareholder value."
“I know the company will continue to thrive long into the future.”
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