Ian Cockerill to succeed Bobby Godsell as Polymetal chair

The FTSE 250 company said both Godsell and Jonathan Best had said they would not be standing for re-election at the upcoming annual general meeting, and as a result, Cockerill would be nominated to succeed Godsell, who had served as chair of the board since 2011.

It said Cockerill would bring to Polymetal a “deep knowledge” of the mining industry, acquired during a 40-year career at some of the sector's leading companies, adding he had “substantial” relevant directorial experience.

He was reportedly responsible for business development at AngloGold between 1996 and 1999, before joining Gold Fields as managing director and chief operating officer in 1999, and in 2002 he became chief executive officer.

Cockerill served in that role until 2008, when he joined AngloCoal as chief executive officer.

Between 2010 and 2017, he was chair of Petmin.

Polymetal said Cockerill would stand for election at its upcoming annual general meeting on 23 April and, subject to his election, would be replacing Bobby Godsell as chair at the close of that meeting.

Additionally, Polymetal said that following Best's retirement from the board, Giacomo Baizini would be appointed as chair of the audit and risk committee.

“I will be stepping down from my role as the chair of Polymetal's board at the 2019 AGM, after a tenure of almost nine years,” said Bobby Godsell.

“I am proud to have overseen a period of substantive growth for the company, and to be leaving Polymetal in a strong position for the new chair to take it to even greater heights.”

Ollie Oliveira, Polymetal’s senior independent director and chair of the nomination committee, added that he was “delighted” that they had such a qualified individual succeeding Godsell as chair of the board.

“In Ian, we have found someone whose skills, experience and values are closely aligned to both the company and his role, and who has developed a deep understanding of the sector through his 40-year career.

“He has a depth of directorial and management experience and has delivered results across a range of diverse and challenging jurisdictions.”

Chief executive officer Vitaly Nesis said Godsell’s “strong support” and “wise leadership” had been instrumental in shaping the values and corporate strategy of Polymetal, which he claimed had successfully navigated the company through the years.

“On behalf of the board, the executive management and all our employees, I would like to sincerely thank Bobby for his enormous contribution and wish him well for the future,” said Nesis.

“Bobby's contribution to Polymetal will undoubtedly be felt long after he leaves the company. I would like to welcome Ian to Polymetal's board and look forward to working with him as we take Polymetal into the next stage in its development.”

The announcement came on the same day that Polymetal reported a 4% improvement in revenue to $1.88bn in its preliminary results , which it said was primarily driven by gold equivalent production growth of 9%.