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Arianne Phosphate says that Mark Edinger will be joining the company as an advisor. Edinger is a 15-year veteran of Nutrien Ltd. and its predecessor (Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan) having most recently served as Director of Phosphate Commercial and Product Management Teams, with responsibility for the global marketing of Nutrien’s phosphate product lines.

“Over the years, I have watched Arianne advance its Lac à Paul deposit from a grass roots exploration asset to, what is today, one of the most significant phosphate deposits in the world,” said Edinger. “Aside from its size and geopolitically safe jurisdiction, Arianne will produce a very high-purity, low-contaminant phosphate that will be required to meet the world’s growing demand. Further, as Arianne has already demonstrated, their phosphate is ideal for the materials required for the LFP battery, a market that will significantly increase the importance of the Arianne deposit. I am very excited to be part of this project and use my knowledge and contacts to see it come to fruition.”

“I worked closely with Mark for many years at Nutrien and look forward to repeating our success at Arianne,” said Raef Sully, former CEO of Nutrien’s Phosphate and Nitrogen divisions and member of the Arianne Board of Directors. “Aside from their significant phosphate fertilizer operations, Nutrien also produces purified phosphoric acid, the material required for industrial applications as well as the LFP battery. Mark and I both know first-hand the opportunities for high-purity market and believe that Arianne can be the major player in this market; we look forward to advancing it.”

The CEO of Algeria’s state oil company Sonatrach Toufik Hakkar has been dismissed by Algerian president Abdelmadjid Tebboune, according to state media. His replacement as CEO is Rachid Hachichi, the latest in more than a dozen changes of leadership at the strategic firm in 25 years. Hakkar took over in February 2020, replacing Kamel-Eddine Chikhi who was fired after serving less than three months at the helm. Hachichi, an engineer with a long career at the company, had previously led Sonatrach from April to November 2019, replacing Abdelmoumen Ould Kaddour shortly after longtime Algerian president Abdelaziz Bouteflika was forced to step down in the face of mass protests.

Sonatrach is owned entirely by the government, which relies on the company’s profits for about 60% of its budget and 95% of export revenues. In recent years it has been shaken by a series of corruption allegations and financial scandals, some of which have prompted investigations in Algeria and abroad. In November 2022 former CEO Ould Kaddour was sentenced to 15 years in prison for corruption over Sonatrach’s purchase of a refinery in Italy.

Chilean state copper giant Codelco has appointed Rubén Alvarado as the company’s new Chief Executive Officer from September 1st. The former general manager of Santiago’s Metro has a long career linked to Codelco, where he was general manager of the El Teniente site between 2000 and 2004. He replaces André Sougarret Larroquet. In a long and varied career, Alvorado, a civil engineering graduate, was general manager of Metro between 2014-22, corporate general manager of Alsace & Express between 2012-13, director of Engineering and Maintenance of LAN Airlines between 2007-12, project manager for the Techint joint venture between 2005-07 in Argentina and general manager of the San Antonio Port Company between 2004-05. He was also a smelter engineer with Codelco from 1984-93, after which he was promoted to Chief of Research and Technology Transfer and later general manager of the site. In this role he reorganised Caletones Smelter to migrate it from a productive functional orientation to one of business processes, and implemented career development projects for workers. He is the third CEO of Codelco in just over a year. The company has struggled in recent years with falling ore grades, reduced copper output and rising debt from an ambitious $40 billion expansion plan. Shortly after taking charge in September 2023, Alvorado reorganised Codelco’s three operational divisions under one roof to be led by Mauricio Barraza, the current central-south head. He also intends to merge mining resources and development with innovation and technology in a team run by northern operations VP Nicolas Rivera. Alejandro Rivera has also stepped down as the firm’s chief financial officer and Nicole Porcile has resigned as head of sustainability.