Carla Gottgens | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Jan du Plessis, chairman of Rio Tinto Group, reacts during a news conference following the company’s annual general meeting in Melbourne, Australia, on Thursday, May 8, 2014.
Rio Tinto Chairman Jan du Plessis is set to step down and take up the chairmanship of BT Group, with the announcement to be made by Britain’s top mobile and broadband operator on Thursday, the Financial Times reported.
Rio Tinto, the world no.2 miner, declined to comment on the report.
Du Plessis, chairman since 2009, has led Rio Tinto through a volatile period, as it scrambled to pay down $39 billion in debt from its Alcan takeover, scrapped a controversial tie-up with China’s Chinalco, sacked a chief executive after over-priced acquisitions and fended off a bid from Glencore.
