The Board of Directors of AngloGold Ashanti (AGA) has announced the appointment of Mr. Srinivasan Venkatakrishnan (Venkat), as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) with immediate effect.

This was contained in a press statement released in Accra on Wednesday by Strategic Communications Africa (Stratcomm).

It said Mr. Venkatakrishnan has been with AngloGold Ashanti for nine years and was the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) at Ashanti Goldfields until that company’s merger with AngloGold Limited in May 2004, creating what is now AngloGold Ashanti.

Shortly after the merger, he became Chief Financial Officer of the combined entity and joined the board in 2005. Venkat had previously been a Director of Corporate Reorganisation Services at Deloitte & Touche in London.

More recently, following the departure of the former CEO at the beginning of April 2013, Venkat has been joint interim CEO of the Company, alongside Mr. Tony O’Neill.

Mr. O’Neill will remain an Executive Director on the board and revert to his role as Executive Vice President: Business and Technical Development. Venkat has been succeeded as CFO by Mr. Richard Duffy, who until now was the Executive Vice President for Continental Africa Region.

Venkat has extensive knowledge of the company and its international portfolio of assets, especially in Ghana, as well as significant financial and capital markets expertise.

In his role as CFO he oversaw funding for all of AngloGold Ashanti’s operating activities, giving him detailed knowledge of all of its mines and operating jurisdictions.

He was the executive responsible for eliminating a 12Moz hedge book, generating significant value for the company, and was the key executive behind rebuilding the balance sheet through a series of successful debt financings that introduced long-term tenor and more favourable funding terms to the company’s credit profile.

Mr. Tito Mboweni, AngloGold Ashanti Chairman stated: “We’re extremely pleased to have an executive of Mr. Venkatakrishnan’s calibre to lead AngloGold Ashanti through the next phase of its development. Venkat will enjoy my personal support and the full support of the board as he brings his extensive experience to complement the impressive depth of our operating and strategic talent.”

Mr. Venkatakrishnan noted: “AngloGold Ashanti has a proud history, high-quality assets and a deep pool of world-class talent,” and pledged, “We will build on the good work done over the years in order to realise the value inherent in our portfolio, while placing a sharp focus on returns, margins and free cashflow.”

AngloGold Ashanti is a global gold mining company and the world’s third-largest gold producer. Headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa, AngloGold Ashanti has 20 operations on four continents and one of the gold industry’s most successful exploration teams, which works across both the established and new gold producing regions of the world.

This includes land positions in Colombia, Guinea and Australia, among others. AngloGold Ashanti produced 3.944Moz of gold in 2012, generating US$6.35bn in gold income. As at 31 December 2012, AngloGold Ashanti’s Ore Reserve totalled 74.1Moz.

The primary listing of the company’s ordinary shares is on the JSE Limited (JSE). Its ordinary shares are also listed on stock exchanges in London and Ghana, as well as being quoted in New York in the form of American Depository Shares (ADSs); in Australia, in the form of CHESS Depository Interests (CDIs); and in Ghana, in the form of Ghanaian Depository Shares (GhDSs).