AngloGold poaches new CEO from rival Barrick Gold

AngloGold Ashanti has moved to fill the hole left by the departure of its chief executive by poaching a senior director from rival Barrick Gold.

AngloGold, which is listed in Johannesburg, said Barrick president Kelvin Dushnisky would be joining the company in September, ending the search to replace Srinivasan Venkatakrishnan.

Mr Venkatakrishnan announced in April he was leaving AngloGold to to join Vedanta Resources the holding company of Indian metal tycoon Anil Agarwal.

“AngloGold Ashanti has a strong portfolio of assets and an exciting pipeline of organic growth opportunities,” said Mr Dushnisky. “I’m honoured to be selected for this role, and look forward to working alongside a world-class team in building on the excellent work already done, as we unlock the enormous potential that exists in the Company.”

Mr Dushnisky joined Barrick in 2002 and is also chairman of Acacia Mining, the London-listed gold producer involved in a bitter dispute with the government of Tanzania.

In his current role, Mr Dushnisky was responsible for reducing debt and streamlining its operations. But most of the big decisions were taken by Barrick’s executive chairman John Thornton, a former star banker at Goldman Sachs.