Glencore's Jeff Gerard will take on the top job on May 2, replacing Danny Callow who had become CEO in mid-January but is resigning as a director and officer.

Callow had replaced Johnny Blizzard, who resigned in December as part of Katanga's C$30 million (US$22.4 million) settlement with the Ontario Securities Commission over misstatements and disclosure failures about its operations in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
 
Both Gerard and Callow were appointed as part of a management services agreement struck with Glencore International AG in January "to better reflect the integrated nature of Katanga's and GIAG's businesses and enhance existing controls".

Callow had worked for Glencore's Africa copper operations for 12 years.

Gerard will also assume Callow's seat on the board.

Gerard joins Katanga from Glencore Coal, where he has been chief development officer based in Sydney since Glencore's merger with Xstrata in 2013.

He will also serve as the head of Glencore's assets in the DRC and oversee the group's other DRC operation, Mutanda Mining.

Non-executive chairman Hugh Stoyell welcomed Gerard and thanked Callow for his significant contribution, including the successful commissioning of Katanga's whole ore leach project at its majority-owned Kamoto copper operation.

Limited cobalt exports resume

Kamoto was able to resume a limited amount of cobalt exports from the DRC this week, Katanga announced on Monday.

The cobalt had complied with regulations regarding uranium levels and represented about 22.5% of the cobalt produced since January 2019, Katanga said.

The company is still investigating long-term and interim options to address the uranium found in its cobalt hydroxide which prompted the suspension of all cobalt sales and exports in November.
 
Katanga shares were changing hands at C$1.80 a year ago and fell as low as 36c in November.

They closed unchanged yesterday at 48c to capitalise it at $915.5 million.