Rio chair Dominic Barton fast tracks hunt for CEO Stausholm replacement

A patch-up job in Mongolia and sorting out who takes charge of its African iron ore gamble are top priorities for Rio Tinto as it nears a big call on the future of its executive ranks.

Rio Tinto chairman Dominic Barton.

Rio Tinto is accelerating the process to find a new chief executive and interviewing shortlisted candidates to replace Jakob Stausholm, with the mining giant seeking a leader capable of steadying its copper fortunes in Mongolia and delivering on its big African iron ore gamble.

Rio is now well advanced in interviewing and evaluating the contenders to replace Mr Stausholm, and sources close to the company say a CEO announcement after the release of its half-year result on July 30 is the most likely path for the board.

The leading internal candidates are Mongolian-born chief commercial officer Bold Baatar, West Australian iron ore boss Simon Trott and Frenchman Jérôme Pécresse, who is in charge of aluminium.

Rio chief technical officer Mark Davies, whose responsibilities include delivering the Simandou project in Guinea, is also understood to have been interviewed.

Rio Tinto chief commercial officer Bold Baatar is a leading candidate to be the mining giant’s new chief executive.

Rio chair Dominic Barton has described himself a “frightened optimist” as the company prepares for a leadership transition against a backdrop of uncertainty around decarbonisation and geopolitical turmoil.

Mr Barton made the comment while appearing alongside Glencore chair Kalidas Madhavpeddi at a mining forum in London on Thursday. Rio and Glencore held discussions on a mega-merger towards the end of 2024, but neither company has ever commented on the potential $260bn tie-up.

It has emerged that Mr Stausholm’s resistance to the mega-merger, or to at least give it serious consideration, was a source of tension with Mr Barton. But Mr Barton has hosed down those claims in off-the-record conversations.

Mr Barton and Mr Madhavpeddi appeared together on a panel at the London Indaba conference focused on mining in Africa.

Mr Barton’s comments on succession, however, provided yet more evidence that Mr Stausholm was pushed out. Rio had no one anointed to replace Mr Stausholm, whose shock departure was announced in May.

Jakob Stausholm will leave Rio this year. Picture: Bloomberg

Mr Barton said succession was “something to be thinking about all the time”.

“I learned this from Chevron. When they pick a new CEO, there’s an immediate succession process that’s started,” the former McKinsey executive and Canadian ambassador to China said.

It was not just about having a plan B if someone “gets hit by a truck or wins the lottery” but to stay across talent development inside and outside the ranks.

Rio didn’t discuss succession at every board meeting, but had regular “deep dives” in regard to both the chief executive and chair positions.

“We’ll continue to do that even after we do our succession, because it’s important to be thinking about it,” Mr Barton said. “You’re also aware of what’s happening outside, and who is available and who isn’t.”

Mr Madhavpeddi indicated Glencore was happy with its chief executive, Gary Nagle.

“At Glencore, I sleep well. We have a deep pool of talent. We review it every year. Nothing that I worry about,” he said.

Glencore chair Kalidas Madhavpeddi says he ‘sleeps well’ knowing his CEO Gary Nagle, pictured, is in the top job. Picture: Bloomberg

At BHP, a successor for chief executive Mike Henry is being discussed after former National Australia Bank boss Ross McEwan became the new chair in March.

Mr Henry is into his sixth year in the job. Chief commercial officer Ragnar Udd, BHP president Australia Geraldine Slattery, and chief financial officer Vandita Pant are considered top contenders.

One leading mining company chief executive, who did not want to be named, said external recruitment pointed to board failure or some kind of crisis.

Mr Baatar is based in Singapore and was head of copper before taking the reins as chief commercial officer last September. He led business development, including M&A, at the same time.

Mr Baatar also maintained his role as Rio’s executive committee lead for Guinea, the African nation where Rio is developing the Simandou iron ore project.

Mr Davies, meanwhile, has led the development side at Simandou, and was on hand at this month’s opening of the new Western Range iron ore mine in WA, which his team delivered on time and on budget.

Western Range is one of a series of replacement mines Rio needs to open in the Pilbara at a cost of $US13bn ($19.9bn) out to 2030.

Rio has stumped up $US6.2bn as its share in building Simandou and Guinea remains under the rule of a military junta.

Mr Trott has so far steered clear of any direct involvement with Simandou as chief executive for iron ore, and in his former role as chief commercial officer.

He has been at Rio for 25 years and was part of the team that defended a $US150bn takeover bid from BHP in 2007.

One of the new CEO’s first tasks will be trying to repair the company’s relationship with the Mongolian government amid legal battles and the latest setback for the Oyu Tolgoi copper mine, a key pillar of the company’s growth.

Rio has also signalled it wants to grow its aluminium business centred in Canada and Australia into India and Finland, under the leadership of Montreal-based Mr Pécresse.

Asked about his prospects of becoming CEO in a recent interview on US aluminium tariffs, Mr Pécresse said: “The board is full of very wise people so I think it is for the board to decide who is eligible and who is not.”

Originally published as Rio chair Dominic Barton fast tracks hunt for CEO Stausholm replacement