Andrew Cole has been off the grid for most of the five months since BHP acquired his copper company, but the former OZ Minerals boss has managed to stay abreast of a few important bits of news while steering his four-wheel-drive and campervan around remote parts of the continent.

“It has been very gratifying watching so many people move onto fantastic and more senior roles. It’s a credit to the people who made up OZ Minerals,” he says. Five members of Cole’s senior leadership team have been appointed chief executives elsewhere since the close of the $9.6 billion deal in May.