Mining’s old guard needs strong medicine
A new report details subpar investor returns in the mining industry over the last decade, particularly big cap diversified companies which have not adapted to new realities.
The World Gold Council announced this week it has named Sibanye-Stillwater chief executive Neal Froneman as its new chair, succeeding Randy Smallwood of Wheaton Precious Metals, who has been the WGC board chair since 2020.
Froneman has been the CEO of Sibanye-Stillwater for over 10 years and brings over 40 years’ experience in the mining industry. Under his leadership, Sibanye evolved from a South African gold producer to a multi-national diversified mining and processing business with assets in five continents. It has also built a leading position in platinum group metals recycling (circular economy) and tailings reprocessing.
In addition to Froneman’s appointment, WGC also welcomed Niël Pretorius, CEO at DRDGOLD, to its board of directors. Based in South Africa, DRDGOLD specializes in the extraction of gold through the large-scale retreatment of mine dumps and tailings dams.
These appointments mark continued evolution and diversity of experience and industry contributions to the board of WGC, the Council said in a press release.
“I would like to thank Randy for his leadership of the board over the last few years. Under his tenure, the World Gold Council has embarked on several new initiatives, from our transformational Gold247 program to help digitalize the global gold industry, to bringing gold to the attention of millions of retail investors,” WGC CEO David Tait said.
“We welcome the appointment of Neal as the new chairman. His wealth of experience in the industry will greatly benefit myself and the rest of the board. I look forward to working with him in this new capacity, and to further our work to improve the gold market and demonstrate the valuable contribution responsible gold mining makes to the world and host communities.”
Also this week, the WGC announced the launch of a new documentary: GOLD: A Journey with Idris Elba, created in partnership with Pioneer Productions.
This docuseries explores the value of gold in past, present and future, while discovering its impacts on individuals, communities and economies. It also highlights how the industry is navigating current challenges, from post-mining regeneration and energy consumption to the future of the workforce in gold mining.
The documentary is now available on YouTube. Click here to watch.
