African Rainbow Minerals (ARM) announced on Wednesday that it has removed Thando Mkatshana as CEO of its underperforming platinum division after eight years at the helm.
The news comes roughly one month after ARM Platinum posted a headline loss of R689m for the six months to end-December, more than double that of the previous first half.
ARM’s Bokoni platinum mines, acquired from Anglo American Platinum and Atlatsa Resources in 2022, weighed heavily on ARM’s interim headline earnings, which declined by 49% to R1.52bn or R7.75 per share as a result.
Bokoni’s failure to meet production guidance during the period under review saw ARM scaling back development and restructuring the operation to mitigate financial losses, according to its latest interim results.
In an announcement to shareholders this week, ARM chair and renowned mining executive Patrice Motsepe thanked former ARM Platinum CEO Mkatshana for the “good work he did as the chief executive of ARM Platinum”.
After eight years at the helm of ARM Platinum, Mkatshana will now serve as the CEO of ARM Technical Services, a division that the group reintroduced this week.
ARM said Mkatshana’s new technical services unit will enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of the group.
As the group embarks on its search for a new permanent CEO of ARM Platinum, division veteran Johan Jansen will act as interim CEO. Jansen has been with the business for 12 years and to whom all the platinum mines’ general managers already report.
“I am confident that Thando and Johan in their new responsibilities will contribute to the global competitiveness of the company and the creation of value for ARM’s shareholders and benefits for its stakeholders,” said Motsepe.
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.