Leadership Shakeup: Rio Tinto's Stausholm to Step Down Amid Broader Industry Turnover

Stausholm’s journey at Rio Tinto

Stausholm joined Rio Tinto as executive director and chief financial officer in 2018.

He took over the position of chief executive in 2021.

“Under Jakob’s leadership, Rio Tinto has restored trust with key stakeholders, aligned our portfolio with the commodities where demand growth is strongest, built a diverse and talented management team, and set a compelling growth trajectory,” said Rio Chair Dominic Barton in the company's release.

In the past year, Rio has made three major lithium moves: the acquisition of Arcadium Lithium, the expansion of the Rincon project in Argentina and the recent acquisition of a 51 percent stake in the Altoandinos project in Chile.

Still, reports imply that Stausholm’s leadership was not perfect.

Reuters quotes one source as saying that he “became more likely to push back on board suggestions and too quickly dismissed opportunities the board felt could have been better explored.”

Merger talks with Glencore (LSE:GLEN,OTC Pink:GLCNF) were cited as an example. Stausholm reportedly rejected an approach from the commodities giant when it was initiated last year.

Since taking the helm at Rio Tinto, Stausholm has faced scrutiny, with some investors questioning whether a leader with deeper mining experience might be better suited to guide the company through its next phase of growth.

Stausholm holds a degree in economics from the University of Copenhagen. Before joining Rio, he served as chief strategy, finance and transformation officer at Maersk (CPH:MAERSK-B) and spent 19 years with Shell (NYSE:SHEL,LSE:SHEL), bringing a background in finance and energy to the mining major.

Stausholm’s potential successors

Considering what Rio Tinto wants to take and not take from Stausholm’s leadership, the question remains: Who is the company looking at as the next chief executive? Reuters’ sources pointed to Simon Trott, head of iron ore, Chief Commercial Officer Bold Bataar and aluminum boss Jerome Pécresse.

All three have been able to work on addressing critical headaches at the company: Trott has helped repair relationships in Australia, Bataar successfully oversaw the underground expansion of the Oyu Tolgoi copper mine in Mongolia during his term as chief copper executive and Pécresse turned the firm's aluminum unit around.

”Pécresse may have an advantage given his management style focused on cost-cutting,” one of Reuters’ sources said. “Rio doesn’t need another visionary right now.”

Stausholm will remain chief executive until a replacement is found.

“A rigorous selection process is already underway, led by the Nominations Committee,” the company said.

At the time of this writing, Rio Tinto was focusing on three strategic pillars: expanding its critical minerals footprint, boosting decarbonization efforts and enhancing operational efficiency.

Oyu Tolgoi is ramping up production, targeting annual output of 500,000 metric tons by 2028. A solar farm in Pilbara is also in the works, and is projected to reduce the company’s CO2 footprint to 120,000 metric tons per year.

“It has been an absolute privilege to lead Rio Tinto, one of the great mining and materials companies in the world. I would like to thank the deeply dedicated and talented people across the organisation that together have raised both operational performance and project execution,” Stausholm said.

“We have built on Rio Tinto’s historic strengths to deliver profitable, stable growth and significant shareholder value. I know the company will continue to thrive long into the future.”

More major miner management shakeups

An hour after Stausholm announced his resignation, Mark Hutchinson, CEO of Fortescue Energy, a division of Fortescue (ASX:FMG,OTCQX:FSUMF), also said that he is stepping down.

Effective July 1, Fortescue Metals' Latin America leader, Agustin Pichot, will act as CEO of growth and energy. Fortescue Metals CEO Dino Otranto will assume broader responsibilities, including hydrogen and electrification oversight.

Media reports from the likes of the Australian Financial Review say Hutchinson will remain as a senior advisor.

In addition to these major miner shakeups, media reports circulating since April suggest BHP (ASX:BHP,NYSE:BHP,LSE:BHP)is on the hunt for a replacement for Chief Executive Mike Henry.

Developments are being monitored, as analysts believe that the chosen leaders will play critical roles in addressing the industry’s current challenges and advancing toward sustainable growth.