Rio Tinto names Shell’s Katie Jackson as new copper chief
Jackson, who is the current president of National Grid Ventures, an energy group, joins Rio Tinto on September 1.
Baja Mining, locked in a bitter dispute with Mount Kellett Capital Management over control of its board, on Monday accused the asset manager of being “reckless,” having a “hidden agenda” and “misleading” shareholders.
Baja’s latest missive concerns an accusation by Mount Kellett, which owns just under 20% of the company building a copper mine in Mexico, that Baja would use its “$38 million in spare cash” to invest in Catalyst Copper.
The CEO of Catalyst Copper – also advancing projects in Mexico – is John Greenslade, who is also in charge of Baja. Greenslade has two daughters who work as corporate secretaries at the respective companies.
Baja Mining is fighting attempts by Mount Kellett to stack the miner’s board with its own nominees and alleges that Mount Kellett is attempting a back-door takeover of the miner.
Mount Kellett, a company with $6 billion under management, in turn says Baja is caught in a “web of conflicts” and accused it of “self-dealing.”
The mud slinging match first caught the media’s attention in January and the rhetoric from both sides have only become more strident since then.
A showdown at a special shareholders’ meeting to vote on the new board composition is set for April 3.
Baja’s 70%-owned Boleo copper-cobalt mine should start production early next year at a cost of $890 million.
Baja was up a solid 3% or 3c at 98c in Toronto on Monday and the stock has advanced 23% so far this year. The counter is worth $335 million on the TSX. It hit an all-time high of $2.46 in July 2007.
Stock discussion boards have been buzzing about the saga, taking sides and fighting battles on behalf of both sides for months now.
