Rio Tinto reveals lineup at Alcan

The first shuffle of Alcan Inc. management by the incoming Rio Tinto Group reveals an executive team with current president Dick Evans at the helm and, nearby, working the levers of the world's largest aluminum producer, a woman born in small-town Quebec. But three key Alcan alumni - all Montreal natives - will not be featured on Rio Tinto Alcan's opening roster should the $38.1-billion (U.S.) deal go through, as expected, before the end of the year. "As we approach the closing of the transaction, it's important to hit the ground running with a strong executive team that can begin to capitalize right away on our leadership position in the aluminium industry," Rio Tinto's chief executive officer Tom Albanese said in a statement issued by the companies yesterday. As previously announced, Alcan CEO Evans will become chief executive of the combined aluminium product group, Rio Tinto Alcan, which will be based in Montreal. And Evans will report directly to Albanese. Reporting to Evans as president and CEO of the primary metal unit will be Jacynthe Côté, an executive who has worked her way up Alcan ranks, most recently to the top spot of the bauxite and alumina unit. Côté, a native of Normandin, in the Saguenay-Lac Saint Jean region, will be responsible for primary metal facilities and power generation installations worldwide. She will be based in Montreal. The headline newcomer to Alcan is Steve Hodgson, who is to assume the role of president and CEO of the new company's bauxite and alumina unit. Hodgson's responsibilities will include bauxite mines, alumina refineries and specialty alumina businesses worldwide. Currently the managing director of Rio Tinto Diamonds, Hodgson is a former executive of Russian aluminum giant United Co. Rusal and a former general manager at Rio Tinto's Comalco smelting operations. Although he will report directly to Evans, his unit will be in Brisbane, Australia, now the home of Rio Tinto's aluminum headquarters. That Hodgson has been diverted from diamonds to Rio Tinto Alcan should add to the worries of executives in Rio Tinto's aluminum division who are wondering if they will survive the merger, said one industry analyst who asked not to be identified. Soon to be gone from Rio Tinto Alcan are Montreal natives Michel Jacques, the current president and CEO of Alcan primary metal, Michael Hanley, Alcan's current chief financial officer, and David McAusland, Alcan's chief legal officer. The three men will stay at the combined company long enough "to ensure a smooth transition," Alcan spokesman Bryan Tucker said yesterday. It shouldn't be assumed that those senior executives were pushed out, the industry analyst said. The men may have decided to use "change-of-control" provisions in their Alcan contracts, take the cash and go elsewhere, he said. The Rio Tinto-Alcan management merger was clearly telegraphed when the deal was announced last July, the analyst said. And the looming departure of Jacques, Hanley and McAusland is "not very" significant, given that Alcan moves from a publicly traded entity to a division of a larger company, he said. Christel Bories is to continue as president and CEO of engineered products for Rio Tinto Alcan in Paris. Until the completion of its planned divestiture - announced in July - Rio Tinto Alcan's packaging unit will be led by Ilene Gordon. That unit has headquarters in Paris. Also incoming from Rio Tinto is Phillip Strachan, who led the "finance function" at Rio Tinto Alcan. He and Jean-Christophe Deslarzes, now senior vice-president of Alcan human resources, will be co-leaders of the Rio Tinto Alcan integration. Alcan executive Corey Copeland will handle communications and external relations functions at Rio Tinto Alcan and be responsible for sustainable development.