Leadership

Tim O'Connor

Chief Exploration Officer

BHP

Tim O’Connor is the Group Exploration Officer at BHP. 
In his current role, Tim has accountability for BHP’s global Exploration efforts – including the innovative Xplor incubator. Prior to stepping into the Exploration, Tim led the Resource Centre of Excellence and Legacy Assets - with functional accountability for Geoscience, Resource Engineering, Tailings and Processing across the group, as well as operational accountability for 24 mine sites in various states of closure.  
A strong believer in the solving complex challenges across the value chain, Tim led the integration of the OZ Minerals business into BHP following its acquisition in 2023.   
Tim has been at BHP since 2006 and has worked in both the Petroleum and Minerals businesses – holding senior roles in Strategy, Exploration and Production.  Tim has degrees in both Geology and Geophysics from Boston College. 

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Kenny Ives

CEO

CMOC

Kenny Ives, Joined IXM in Q4 2022 as CEO. In December 2024, Kenny took on the additional role of Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer of the CMOC Group. IXM is a leading global marketing and trading house, focused on commercializing base metals, metal concentrates and specialty metals. CMOC Group is a leading producer of Copper, Cobalt, Molybdenum, Tungsten, Niobium and Phosphate fertilizer, with a diversified portfolio of operations in the DRC, Brazil and China. Before joining IXM, Kenny spent over 23 years at Glencore, and is a graduate of Brasenose College, Oxford.

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Ben Magara

CEO

Exxaro

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Marie-Chantal Kaninda

CEO

Glencore - DRC

Marie-Chantal Kaninda joined Glencore DRC 5 years ago as Vice-President of Corporate Affairs .

Since January 2023 , she is The President of Glencore DRC and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Kamoto Copper Company-KCC(since July 2022) ,a partnership between Gécamines and Glencore in the DRC. She has over 25 years of professional experience in the mining sector in major international groups such as Ashanti Goldfieds, AngloGold Ashanti, Debeers Group in charge of administration, communication and external affairs in Central Africa and Communities in Africa, and Rio Tinto as Director of External Relations for Africa. Marie-Chantal holds a degree in economics from the University of Liège, in Belgium, and for two years was one of the first woman to helm the World Diamond Council. Married with two daughters, she has long advocated for greater access to training for girls and women, as well as for greater inclusion in the mining sector. She is a mentor to several young women entrepreneurs in the DRC, the founder and creator of a not-for-profit association (the MCKM Foundation), which addresses the issue of girls’ education in the DRC. She is a member of several boards of directors, including Standard Bank in DRC as chairman of Board of Director . Marie-Chantal was recognized as one of the most influential women for 3 consecutive years by Forbes Africa”.

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Marna Cloete

CEO

Ivanhoe Mines

Marna Cloete has been the President of Ivanhoe Mines since April 2020, leveraging over 20 years of expertise in strategic finance, resource development, and organizational transformation. Since joining Ivanhoe Mines in 2006, she has played a vital role in the company’s evolution, notably serving as Chief Financial Officer from 2009 to 2020. During this time, Marna’s financial acumen and visionary leadership laid the groundwork for Ivanhoe Mines’ sustainable growth and global success.

Marna has been instrumental in driving some of the mining industry’s most significant achievements. Under her leadership, Ivanhoe Mines successfully developed and launched production at the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), one of the world’s largest and highest-grade copper projects. She also guided the reopening of the Kipushi mine, renowned for its ultra-high-grade zinc, copper, germanium, and silver deposits, and continues to oversee the development of the Platreef Project in South Africa, the world's largest precious metals development, which includes palladium, platinum, nickel, copper, and gold.
 
Her leadership extends beyond operations to strategic partnerships that have transformed Ivanhoe Mines’ footprint on the global stage. Marna played a pivotal role in forging joint ventures with Zijin Mining and partnerships with companies such as CITIC Metal and a Japanese consortium led by Itochu. Under her guidance, Ivanhoe raised critical funding, including a US$490 million equity offering in December 2023 and a US$750 million debt package to fuel expansion in January 2024. She also positioned Ivanhoe Mines as the first company to utilize the Lobito Atlantic Rail Corridor for mineral exports, unlocking cost efficiencies and international trade opportunities.

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Sinead Kaufman

CE: Minerals

Rio Tinto

As Chief Executive of Rio Tinto’s Minerals portfolio Sinead has accountability for a global suite of businesses including battery materials, titanium dioxide, diamonds, borates, scandium and iron ore pellets and concentrate from operations and projects in Canada, Madagascar, Mozambique, South Africa, Australia, Europe, Argentina and the US. 
The Minerals portfolio is focused on meeting the demand for critical minerals for the energy transition. As part of this, Sinead oversaw the creation of Rio Tinto’s Battery Materials business which includes the Rincon lithium project in Argentina, the Jadar lithium project in Serbia and multiple technology partnerships. The Minerals portfolio also includes the recent acquisition of the Platina Scandium Project, a high grade scandium resource in New South Wales. 
Sinead brings to her current role deep operational expertise and leadership combined with a track record and a commitment to sustainability and empowerment, advancing a culture of diversity and inclusion in the mining industry. 
Sinead first joined Rio Tinto as a geologist in the United Kingdom in 1997 and has since gained international mining experience across a range of commodities including copper, aluminium, bauxite, diamonds, coal, salt, uranium and iron ore in both underground and open pit environments

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Phoevos Pouroulis

CEO

Tharisa

Phoevos Pouroulis is the Chief Executive Officer of the Tharisa plc, with responsibility for overall strategy and management. Phoevos has held various senior managerial and operational positions in his more than 21-year career. He has extensive experience in project management, mining design, commissioning and mining operations, including PGM and chrome, having been involved in South Africa's mining industry since 2003. He has served as Commercial Director for Chromex Mining plc and was a founding member of Keaton Energy. Phoevos currently serves on the board of the World Platinum Investment Council.
 

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Mark Cutifani

Chairman

Vale - Base Metals

Mark Cutifani is a mining executive with 47 years industry experience.  He has worked as a C Suite Executive for 33 years, 18 as Chief Executive.  He was most recently the Chief Executive of Anglo American PLC, where he led the company’s most significant transformation, delivering industry leading shareholder returns for a Major Diversified mining group.  He has received numerous awards and acknowledgements including, Europe’s Most Sustainable Mining Executive, Chief Executive of the Year and both Australia’s and South Africa’s top professional awards (AusIMM and SAIMM) for his contributions to the global mining industry.  

He is currently the Chair of the new spin off, Vale Base Metals business, while he is also a NED for TotalEnergies and the Senior NED for Laing O’Rourke.  He is also involved in both NGO and charitable organisations including, The Power of Nutrition (Chair),  Development Partner Institute (Director) and the Global Foundation (Chair of the International Advisory Committee).

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