Reuters reported that Rio Tinto (TSX:RIO) CFO Guy Elliot will be retiring at the end of next year, prompting the mining giant to create a new position to oversee the company’s strategy.

As quoted in the market news:

The new position overseeing group strategy and business development will be taken on by Doug Ritchie, currently the head of the group’s energy division. Ritchie starts the London-based role Jan. 1, 2013.

Rio Tinto CEO, Tom Albanese, stated that Ritchie’s role:

[U]nderlines the priority we place on this key area and on continuity of our strategic direction

To read the full Reuters report, click here.