Greatland Gold has appointed Shaun Day as its new chief executive, sending shares up 2.3% to 33.2p.
Shaun Day will succeed current chief executive, Gervaise Heddle, who is leaving the group to “pursue other interests”. Shaun Day will take up the position of chief executive and join the Board on 8 February 2021.
Heddle will remain a part of the executive team until March 12, 2021 to ensure a smooth transition.
Day said: “I am delighted to take on the role of Chief Executive Officer of Greatland. Under the leadership of Gervaise, the remarkable progress at the Havieron Joint Venture over the past two years has created a strong platform for future growth. I look forward to working closely with the Board, the Greatland team and our key partners as we continue to drive forward a multi-pronged growth strategy and realise further value for shareholders.”
Day is currently chief financial officer of AIM-listed miner Salt Lake Potash. When he starts his new role, he will be granted 5,000,000 performance options on commencement of employment.
Alex Borrelli, Chairman of Greatland Gold plc, said: “On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank Gervaise for his tireless commitment and outstanding contribution to the development and success of Greatland. Gervaise joined the business in May 2016 and was instrumental in the acquisition of the Havieron project and securing the subsequent Farm-in and Joint Venture Agreements with Newcrest. Under his leadership, the team at Greatland has delivered exceptional value creation for shareholders.
“It is a measure of our growing reputation as a business that we are able to attract high-quality people to Greatland, and I am delighted to welcome Shaun to our Board as our Chief Executive Officer. Shaun brings extensive industry and regional experience as well as capital markets expertise and is a great addition to our strong management team. During his five years at Northern Star, one of Australia’s largest gold miners, Shaun helped take the company from a similar size as Greatland to an approximate A$8bn market capitalisation, demonstrating his all-round expertise and suitability for the role. We look forward to working with him and benefitting from his extensive experience.”
Greatland Gold shares (LON: GGP) are trading -1.35% at 32.06 (1314GMT).